The Wayward Son
by Angelus Titanus
Summary: Specially chosen by the Ordo Malleus to help hunt down the leader of a warband of Emperor's Children, Kill Team Calamity of the Deathwatch encounter way more than they were counting on. Between Heretics, the Inquisition, Eldar, Dark Eldar, and Chaos one Blood Raven librarian has his faith truly tested in the midst of heresy and temptation in the 13th Black Crusade.
1. Chapter 1

**The Wayward Son**

 **Summary:** Specially chosen by an Inquisitor of the Ordo Malleus to hunt down the leader of a warband of Emperor's Children, Kill Team Calamity of the Deathwatch encounter way more than they were counting on. Between Heretics, the Inquisition, Eldar, Dark Eldar, and Chaos one Blood Raven librarian has his faith truly tested in the midst of heresy and temptation in the 13th Black Crusade. With the return of the primarchs and the truth revealed to him, will Deathwatch Librarian, Seiras choose the Emperor over heresy?

 ***** **Disclaimer** ***:** Games Workshop owns all things Warhammer related. If you're from GW don't read this fanfiction...DON'T do it! Also, be warned readers that this story deserves every bit of its M rating. I would not recommend reading it if you're a child or if you're sensitive to actual mature content. It starts off light in the early chapters, but you'll soon find yourself down the rabbit hole if you keep going. This story is going to be graphic...(Like if Slaanesh and Vect made a porno). I understand some readers probably don't like that sort of content, so here's your warning now before you get invested...this story is actually Rated CU for Chaos Undivided. It includes: blood for the blood god, lemons for the lemon throne, EXACTLY AS PLANNED, cross-species romance, some xeno/human sympathizing, "gifting", Imperial Guardsmen profanity, grimdark oppression, slavery, drugs, torture, Dark Eldar being dark, and worst of all...a few non-canonical bits.

I don't intend to go too AU or OOC with factions, but I'm not GW. This is a fanfiction, so don't expect me to follow fluff to the letter or hold back as much as they do in regards to sexual themes. You can read the actual novels if you want the GW experience. They're great, but if you want a non PC/non kid friendly version of 40k...then you've clicked on the right story. Shhh...it's okay. Your secret heresy will stay right here between us. With that being said, I hope you enjoy the story.

 **Chapter 1: 13th Black Crusade**

 **M42**

 **Segmentum Tempestus. Emperor Class Battleship** _ **Avenger of Terra,**_ **Shrine World Ophelia VII**

A stalwart Inquisitor walked across the bridge of the Emperor Class Battleship _Avenger of Terra_. Officers saluted as she passed and made her way to the command deck. Following behind her were four grey knights, each standing around in a box like formation.

While they were typically not seen by military personnel, the Inquisition had little concern in hiding their existence from the current fleet. Behind this escort of grey knights, was also a group of black clad Deathwatch Astartes each bearing the symbol of the Inquisition and of their own chapters. Many officers on the bridge gawked in amazement at the sight of Grey Knights and of the Deathwatch space marines. Seeing a normal space marine was a rare and exciting thing for regular military personnel...but to see Inquisition Astartes was something else entirely.

The Admiral on the command deck turned around to greet the Inquisitor promptly, "Ah, Inquisitor Atia Castilla, I am pleased to see you made it here safely my lady. It is a great honour to aid the Inquisition. "

"Indeed it is...for you have been called upon to fulfill the Emperor's will and join with my Ordo Malleus Fleet. Do you know why I'm here, Admiral Hightower and why we're meeting at this planet?" Atia asked sternly.

The admiral frowned, "Unfortunately, I do not."

To the admiral's side, a very prestigious looking fleet commissar was eyeing the arrivals up and down somewhat uncertainly. It was clear he did not like the Inquisition based on his intense glaring. Although given the fact that he was a commissar, that might have been his happy face for all they knew.

The Commissar shook his head disapprovingly, "I know why you're here, Inquisitor. You are here for the same reason all Inquisitors come to Admiral Hightower...for missions with high exposure to heretical and daemonic forces. Am I correct, ma'am?"

"Indeed you are Lord Commissar. Allow me to brief you on our mission and give you the information you need to help us see it through. Keep in mind, everything is on a need to know basis for the majority of your fleet as I am sure you are no doubt aware. I do not want a reason to have to execute your men and women for negligient gossipping. Ensure they keep their mouths shut about this both before and after or there will be interrogations and executions," Atia said strongly.

"You have my word, Inquisitor. I swear by the golden throne and the Emperor himself that the nature of this mission will remain a secret," Admiral Hightower replied without hesitation.

The Inquisitor smiled, "Good...I understand your fleet has dealt with Chaos before, yes? You encountered a warband of Emperor's Children Chaos Space Marines nearly eight years ago. It was all brushed under the rug and you had to undergo a mind wipe purification purge for a number of your men correct?"

The admiral's eyes widened as a frown plastered over his face, "Yes..."

The Commissar on the other hand gave her a hard stare, "You already know that we did...get to the point, Inquisitor."

"We tracked down that warband. They're invading Imperial territory and spreading heresy among Imperial worlds. If I had to guess what it was, I would call it recruiting. From what I have gathered, they already took full control of the shrine world Hestia Secundus and the entire surrounding Sub-Sector. It has been condemned to Death by Exterminatus," the Inquisitor said callously.

One of the admiral's bridge officers gasped aloud and interrupted their conversation, "Hestia Secundus? Hestia Primaris is my home planet...has the entire system been declared for exterminatus?!"

"As you were, Commander!" The commissar spoke authoritatively.

The Commander fearfully looked at Atia, "Madame Inquisitor...why? A liberation fleet can't save it?"

The Commissar gave a death glare to the officer for interrupting again, but said nothing as the Inquisitor turned towards the worried officer.

"Heresy is impossible to uproot once it is engrained into a planet's hierarchy. Daemonic heresy even more so. This Chaos Warband is spreading the worship of Daemons all throughout the system...specifically the Cult of Slaanesh is what we're dealing with. It has infected the nobility as well as the commoners. Your world is doomed, Commander...as is the entire sub-sector Hestia," the Inquisitor explained solemnly with a bit of anger.

"Did you say the Cult of Slaanesh?" The admiral gulped just hearing something so heretical.

"Yes...they're unknown by the Imperium at large, and for good reason...but Slaaneshi cultists are among the most vile, sadistic, and evil enemies we have faced. Unlike aliens or other Chaos Warbands, they won't just kill you. They prefer to twist and corrupt the minds of others and to torture people into submission. It's all quite sick. They are almost as bad as Dark Eldar," Atia sighed.

"Chaos heretics ARE the most vile enemies of the Imperium. They prey on the weaknesses of man and turn faithful servants of the emperor into a mockery of humanity. I have seen too many guardsmen and civilians tempted into these cults because they cannot endure the rigorous test of faith that the Emperor has given us. These corruptors and traitors should all be put down with fiery zeal," the commissar added with anger.

The Inquisitor looked at the commissar and the admiral for a brief moment before sighing, "It is unfortunate that the infection of heresy plagues even those we hold dear. It is for this reason that our mission to stop the chaos warband is that much more important. Your current fleet is faithful and tested...they will do well for my mission in eradicating them."

"As you say, madame Inquisitor," the Admiral bowed slightly.

The commissar seemed to lack the admiral's same level of respect, "Unusual for the Inquisition to seek help outside of its own ranks. What aren't you telling us, ma'am? Is the enemy a threat to even an Exterminatus fleet?"

"There are other reasons that we are bringing a larger fleet, Commissar..." Atia trailed off.

"So we are to purge the Hestia Sub-Sector with your fleet then I take it?" the Admiral asked.

Atia shook her head, "That is not our mission, admiral. The entire sub-sector Hestia already has an exterminatus fleet in route led by my fellow Inquisitor. The heretics intend to scour the Justicar Sub-Sector last we heard. It is likely their intention to take advantage of the wealthy worlds there and plant a seed of corruption among the nobility. Their movement patterns suggest that they are expanding forward bases closer to Holy Terra. The reports we managed to gather from Hestia Secundus indicate that the Sub-Sector fleet was wiped out. It's fair to assume that the enemy has a considerable armada if that is the case. We are moving to attack the enemy fleet."

"Is it a Black Crusade, Inquisitor?" the commissar asked seriously.

"It is my belief and that of many other Inquisitors that it is indeed a Black Crusade. However, I do not believe Abaddon the Despoiler is personally involved in managing this warband. It is likely an upstart chaos champion of the Emperor's Children acting on behalf of the Black Legion in order to separate our forces and possibly recruit. We cannot allow this warband of Emperor's Children to infect any more worlds than they already have. We will intercept their fleet and destroy them all. I have brought my own ships from Titan to join with your fleet to see it done. I expect multiple despoiler class battleships to be among the enemy's fleet as well as any number of cruisers and escort ships," Atia explained.

"My fleet can do this, Madame Inquisitor...but expect heavy losses. We're not equipped to deal with Chaos Space Marines or daemons boarding our ships. Is there no chance for you to get nearby Space Marine chapters to send aid as well? I'm sure some could spare a few battle barges?" the admiral asked hopefully.

"We asked the Space Wolves to send a fleet as they are one of the closest to the Armageddon Sector. I'm sure you can imagine how well that went seeing as how they do not respect the Inquisition. They're more likely to assist an Imperial Guard regiment in distress than answer to us," Atia sighed.

"I'm surprised you let them get away with that," the Admiral said shaking his head. The Commissar didn't seem to share the admiral's disapproval in the Space Wolves blowing off the Inquisition. His face was neutral and apathetic in comparison to the distressed and annoyed ones on the admiral and the Inquisitor had. It was only then that the Space Marines present could tell that the Commissar disliked the Inquisition.

"The Inquisition shows the Space Wolves autonomy for the simple fact that they are fiercely loyal to the Imperium. Not only that, but their chapter is far too large to effectively make an example of. They do enough for us by sending their champions to Deathwatch...so they are left to their own devices more or less," Atia elaborated with a voice full of disapproval.

"It's not like you could even punish them anyway. Fenrisians have no concept of high law. Not only that, but the Wolf Fleet is massive and Fenris is one of the most defensible planets in the Imperium. You simply give them autonomy because you can't do anything to them. I heard even your Grey Knights can't deal with them," The fleet commissar called her out. The Inquisitor's face soured upon hearing his words.

The Deathwatch members all looked at their Space Wolf brother in terminator armor. It was clear to them that he wanted to say something on the matter as well, but thankfully he did not speak.

"Regardless of the Space Wolves situation, there are other chapters I have contacted. Intelligence reported a Dark Angels fleet in the Armageddon Sector. Our last communication attempts with them revealed that they were preoccupied with Eldar and other chaos forces, but would send us help if possible. I would not count on them arriving before we do if at all unfortunately. However, it is reassuring that they are at least close if we need reinforcements. I also sent word to warn most of the chapters in Segmentum Solar. I got responses from the Star Dragons, the Storm Wings, White Templars, and the Imperial Fists. The first two sent ships to meet up with our other Exterminatus fleet. The Imperial Fists and the White Templars sent their marines to aid mine. They have both generously supplied us with several battle barges that are due to arrive before we embark. Rest assured that we will be able to counter Chaos Marines. If all goes well we should arrive before the heretics do any major damage in Sub-sector Justicar." the Inquisitor elaborated in more detail.

"How many of these grey knights are coming with us Inquisitor?" the admiral asked as he looked at the four grey knight terminators surrounding the Inquisitor.

"We could only spare a handful for this mission as the Grey Knights are spread thin as of late. Four specifically will be coming for this mission. These four Grey Knight Terminators are my personal guard and are renowned daemon slayers. This is their ranking leader here. Allow me to introduce Grey Knights' Brother-Captain Arius Sentius and his Terminator Squad." Atia gestured.

There was a brief silence before the man nodded. He looked up at the grey knights and Deathwatch space marines standing around the Inquisitor and spoke a sigh of relief, "At least the Emperor's angels of death will be at our side...may he watch over us all in this dark battle to come."

"I find it odd that you would also employ Deathwatch for this mission. The Ordo Xenos does not typically deal with chaos forces as far as I'm aware. Who are these Deathwatch Marines ma'am? I assume they have some special purpose for this battle?" the Commissar questioned.

"Yes, commissar...This is Kill Team Calamity. They will be assaulting the enemy flagship with my grey knights during the battle. I have also been given command of Adepta Sororitas by the Ecclesiarchy. The sisters from the Order of the Valorous Heart will also be going with them. The Ecclesiarchy wanted failsafes and vigilance over our forces due to the nature of fighting chaos. I'm sure you understand," Atia explained.

"I see...so that is why the high command ordered us to come to await your arrival at this world." the man said understandingly.

"They sent a Cannoness Commander and her Commandery to this ship. They are likely due to arrive any time soon now that my fleet is here," the woman responded.

The admiral stared at the towering superhumans before glancing back at the Inquisitor, "This is quite a strange assortment of forces, but I understand the Inquisition is spread thin as of late. I imagine this mission is of the utmost priority if the Inquisition and the Ecclesiarchy are both involved."

"Indeed it is, Admiral Hightower. I'm sending as many Tempestus Scions, Adepta Sororitas, and Adeptus Astartes as we can afford in this mission. My stormtroopers and the Imperial Fist Astartes will make up the bulk of our assault force, but the Sisters of Battle and all of my Astartes here are highly experienced in killing daemons and traitor space marines. They will ensure our success against these Emperor's Children Space Marines," the Inquisitor explained.

"Do you know who the leader is? It seems unusual to devote so many forces to killing him on his ship," the admiral wondered.

"We do not, but he undoubtedly commands a lot of power and authority if he was able to assemble such a large warband under his command. As you may or may not be aware, the Emperor's Children is one of the most divided traitor legions. Seeing them gather in great numbers like this is troubling...especially when a Black Crusade is going on," Atia replied sternly.

Admiral Hightower placed a hand on his chin, "I see, this is definitely a point of concern. The last warband we fought had a Despoiler battleship commanding it as well as multiple cruisers. Do we have any actual indication on how large this fleet will be?"

The Inquisitor shook her head, "Not entirely, but if they are able to move through the Armageddon Sector unopposed, it would undoubtedly include a much larger force than the one you've faced previously. The Chaos Fleet will more than likely try to flee or regroup when we start to win the battle. Therefore I want to make sure that their leader is slain before this can occur. With the head cut off early, this warband will descend into anarchy and more than likely retreat back to the Eye of Terror in pieces. If we sow discord among their leadership then they will have a much harder time recovering and we can wipe out the rest of their fleet as they flee."

"Valid strategy and point. It will definitely save many of my ships and the lives of the men and women aboard them. Very well...I shall have my fleet prepared as soon as possible to intercept this chaos fleet. I will mobilize our departure for the warp once the Imperial Fists and White Templars arrive to join us," the man bowed his head as he turned to issue orders to his officers.

The Inquisitor turned to face the Grey Knights and the Deathwatch Kill Team, "Kill Team Calamity...you know your mission. Report to your designated quarters in the unused hanger five. Grey Knights...you stay with me. Inquisitorial Accomodations will be made for you all shortly. Remain on the flagship unless I say otherwise."

"Understood," they all said in unison with booming voices.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX** _ **Avenger of Terra**_ **, Kill Team Calamity XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Kill Team Calamity was quite the unusual assortment of Astartes to say the least. They were all specialists in multiple different fields, but the one thing they all shared in common was their infamy and experience in killing other Space Marines.

It was for that reason alone that they were taken from their traditional alien slaying missions in the Ordo Xenos.

Their seven man team had unique members from seven different chapters. Among them included a Blood Raven Librarian, a Blood Angel Veteran Sergeant, a Salamander Techmarine, a Minotaur Terminator, a Space Wolf Terminator, a Black Templar, and most unusual of all a Blackshield veteran.

After leaving the bridge, the seven Deathwatch marines made their way to the assigned special quarters Atia had given them. The unused hanger 5 looked like it had seen better days judging by the lack of maintenance and cleanliness one would expect. The space marines all had varying opinions of their accomodations upon making a quick tour of it.

The official leader of the group was the Blood Angel Watch Sergeant. He sighed heavily as he looked over the others, "It's not the best, but this will do for now. Besides, none of us should be getting too comfortable while we're here."

"Still...you would think the Inquisition would be good at accomodating space marines properly by this point. Those Grey Knights get their own little special quarters with the Inquisitor...it's probably better than what we have. Why would she stick us in some unused hanger? We could be traveling for weeks in the warp," The Blood Raven Librarian complained. he was the team's second in command.

The Blood Angel sighed, "Well the Ordo Malleus doesn't usually accomodate Deathwatch. We will just have to make due."

"Damn Inquisition only takes care of the Grey Knights. Forget the rest of us right? I mean there's literally nothing here to resupply us. No nutrient paste dispensers, no armour rig platforms, or anything else of the sort. Why are we being forced to stay on the flagship?" the librarian said disapprovingly.

"I didn't even bring extra nutrient paste to consume...I thought we'd be going with the Imperial Fists. Do you suppose Inquisitor Atia is just waiting to stick us on another ship once they arrive?" the Blood Angel Sergeant asked.

The Blood Raven Librarian shrugged, "I couldn't say. We were ordered to deploy on short notice and we were taken here by that cruiser. Atia said accomodations would be made. Maybe the servitors are transferring our supplies from there to here? At any rate, I'm hungry, and I don't want to consume the rest of our nutrient paste before we figure out what's going on."

"All you do is complain, Brother Seiras. For a librarian you sure are impatient. Aren't you all supposed to be wise or something?" the Black Templar of the group said in annoyance. Like most Black Templars, he had a strong dislike for psykers. He was not fond of the group's librarian.

"Who are you calling impatient, Gregorius? I'm not the one that nearly died on our last mission for outrunning the rest of us and trying to be a one man army. We're a team you know," Seiras replied to the Black Templar assault marine.

The Templar shrugged, "Fair enough...but strong assaults are my specialty. It's why I was assigned to Deathwatch. I'm not used to your defensive melee tactics yet...or having to take orders from a psyker."

"This again? I thought I told you to rein in that attitude, Gregorius," the Blood Angel Sergeant interrupted.

Gregorius the Black Templar grunted in displeasure, "Anyways...regardless of that, I don't care what we eat or where we sleep. It won't be long before we're killing Chaos traitors."

"I am glad that the Imperial Fists and White Templars are helping us in this assault...with only us seven and the handful of grey knights, it would be difficult to take down a chaos warband," the Salamander techmarine noted.

"Well we have Stormtroopers and Sisters of Battle coming with us too," the Blood Angel sergeant reminded him.

The Salamander techmarine nodded his head, "It's good to see that the Inquisitors are devoting a lot of forces to this mission. We can never be too prepared...especially if it's a Black Crusade."

"Who is even supposed to be in charge for the assault on the enemy flagship? Some Imperial Guard Officer? A commissar? Us? A space marine captain? One of the sisters? Any ideas Sergeant Kallius? I've never seen this many different forces work together. Have you?" Seiras questioned.

The Blood Angel Sergeant looked at the librarian and shrugged, "I was not sure about that myself. We have different rank structures and authority doctrines. I don't know of any joint command leader for this mission besides the Inquisitor herself. It likely won't matter as we all have our own missions to do. If nothing else I would assume that the Grey Knight Captain would be in charge."

"It would be a lot easier if the Inquisitor would just lead the assault herself..." Seiras sighed, "but I'm guessing she's just going to oversee the fleet battle with the Admiral."

"That's a waste if you ask me...she should be coming with us. Inquisitor Atia is an extremely powerful psyker from what I've heard," the Salamander techmarine interjected.

"She's better off managing the fleet. We shouldn't need her help with those grey knights coming with us. Between them and the Sororitas, we will have more than enough power to take down whoever is running this Chaos warband," Kallius replied.

"On the bridge earlier was the first I've heard about the Adepta Sororitas going with us. Don't you find it strange that they have the same mission as we do and that we only find out about it last minute?" the Librarian asked.

"Well they were sent by the Ecclesiarchy. It's more than likely a failsafe protocol as Atia said. You know how the Imperium likes to run things with its checks and balances. I also wouldn't doubt it if their presence is meant to keep the chance of heresy and mutiny low during the mission. It serves to represent the Ordo Hereticus' close watch on the fleet as well. When it comes to fighting chaos, they like to have a bit of oversight. Considering even Inquisitors aren't immune to chaos corruption I can understand why," Sergeant Kallius elaborated.

"The Sisters are very loyal and highly trusted by the Inquisition...more than even most Space Marine Chapters. Considering our mission's importance, it is likely that we will be watched closely for any signs of corruption both during and after the battle. I've worked with Sororitas before and it's almost always like that. If I had to guess, we'll probably be under the command of that Canoness Commander. If not, then the Grey Knight Captain will be in charge," the Black Templar Gregorius explained as he looked at the Blood Angel.

Sergeant Kallius nodded, "That makes the most sense...although Inquisitor Atia is known for keeping a tight leash on space marines. We'll likely be under someone else's command just for the simple fact that we're out of our element here."

The Blood Raven sighed, "This mission is too suspicious if you ask me. The Ordo Malleus, the Ordo Xenos, and the Ordo Hereticus are all involved. How often does that happen? I have no doubts that we're in for some serious opposition. That's the only explanation for this unusual congregation of forces."

"Well it is in the Armageddon Sector," the Salamander noted.

"Regardless of our own forces, I am concerned about the warband we will be facing. Their recent organized subterfuge is not what the Emperor's Children would typically do. They are one of the most fractured Chaos Legions. The Inquisitor is most likely correct in believing that there is an upstart champion from the Emperor's Children uniting warbands and recruiting numbers. This kind of thing would make more sense if it was the Alpha Legion or Black Legion we were dealing with. It suggests that whoever is leading this warband of Emperor's Children is definitely a competant champion and is in league with Abaddon," the Blood Angel Sergeant changed the subject.

"All the more glory for us to kill him then!" the space wolf terminator added causing the others to nod.

Seiras looked at the Space Wolf curiously, "So...what do you think about the wolves and the Inquisition, Viggo? I'm amazed you didn't say anything back on the bridge. Don't Space Wolves hate the Ordo Malleus?"

"I'm a wolf, but I'm not stupid, Seiras. Even I know when to keep my mouth shut. Hah...but rest assured that the wolves will show up if things get serious. We're proud, but not petty," Viggo said proudly.

"If the Dark Angels' fleet shows up, then we won't even need the wolves. Honestly I doubt we need this much help as it is. It's at least good to know they're around," the Salamander techmarine interjected.

"Oi, we don't need the bloody Dark Angels here, Nemias! They better not come near any wolf fleet if they know what's good for them," Viggo said strongly.

Seiras shook his head, "Whatever is in the enemy fleet should not be taken lightly. Any help we get is invaluable."

"On another note, Atia better be sending our servitors to make this place accomodating. It could be days before we get reassigned. Didn't the Inquisitor think to have a proper set up since we're being forced to remain on this flagship? Where are we supposed to take off our armour or sleep in here?" Kallius asked as he looked around confused.

"I guess we'll have to go get some new servitors if nothing is done about it. At the very least I want to inquire about whether or not the ones from the cruiser are coming here." Seiras replied.

"I imagine they are coming. If not, it's an easy fix," Viggo added.

"I'm sure they will come by and address it. I can send word for them to give us a better set up if we don't get any word about it soon. No need to stress over it Seiras," the Salamander, Nemias, suggested.

Seiras grunted in displeasure, "Those Imperial Fists can't get here soon enough if you ask me. I want to go with them. If Inquisitor Atia is forcing us to stay on this ship with these kinds of accomodations then we should at least go get an actual meal while we're waiting on servitors."

"And where are we going to find that?" Gregorius, the Black Templar asked impatiently.

"We could just eat in the mess hall with the regular crew if you're really in favor of an actual meal, brothers," the salamander techmarine, Nemias, suggested.

"When was the last time you ate, Seiras?" Kallius asked curiously.

The Blood Raven shrugged, "My nutrient resevoir ran out a few days ago. I didn't get around to filling it since I thought we could do it here. I mean I could go another week or so if I really had to, but why bother when we're not on a mission yet. Besides we could be in the warp for weeks. We need to eat something."

"So you're in favor of the mess hall then?" the Salamander asked.

The Blood Raven shook his head at the Salamander, "Preferably not the mess hall. I don't want to deal with that, Nemias. You remember what happened the last time we decided to interract with normal people right?"

"You can't really blame them for that, I mean we were probably the only Space Marines that some of them are ever going to see. You should be more empathetic to regular people, Seiras. It means a lot to guardsmen when they get to interract with us and fight by our side. I imagine it's the same feeling we would get fighting beside a primarch...to know that someone more powerful than you is there in case you need help," the Salamander Nemias said to the librarian Blood Raven.

Seiras gave the Salamander techmarine a careless shrug, "Your chapter tries too hard to be heroes of the people, Nemias...we're not like them. Our job is to kill the enemies of man, not protect the lowest common denominator. We're the Angels of Death, not mercy. I am not going to go in there and play hero to a bunch of people that don't matter."

"But they do matter...those people are the Imperium. How many space marines are in the Imperium of Man? A few million? There are hundreds of billions of guardsmen and quadrillions of regular people...maybe more. Their lives matter just as much as ours. Just because we're greater warriors than them does not mean that they are any less significant as people," Nemias lectured.

"Pfft...bleeding heart Salamanders," Gregorius said shaking his head.

"I'm not saying your logic is wrong, Nemias, but it is irrelevant to the matter at hand. I don't feel like entertaining regular people that have no significance to us or our mission right now. We can't ever walk into a crowded area without them all making a huge production out of it." Seiras sighed.

"For once I agree with our _wise_ librarian..." Gregorius made sure to over emphasize the word which left no doubt that he thought the opposite.

"I agree with Seiras as well. It rings even truer for us in Deathwatch. Unless they have something relevant to say to us or do for us, there is no point in talking to them," the Minotaur Terminator spoke for the first time as he nodded in approval.

"Decimus, you always agree with Seiras even when he's wrong, so that's hardly relevant input," Nemias said shaking his head at the Minotaur.

"Your idealistic fantasy of playing hero to the common folk of the Imperium is what I would call hardly relevant...we're warriors through and through. Our purpose is only to destroy the enemies of the Emperor. Anything else is a delusion. Do not question us for not sharing your chapter's fragile beliefs," Decimus said strongly.

"I'm glad at least you understand my position here, Brother Decimus," Seiras said to the Minotaur Terminator by his side. Decimus gave him an acknowledging nod.

"No wonder you two hate-filled, cynical bastards get along so well. I thought your chapter got along well with normal people, Seiras. Most normal people I've seen you talk to seem to like you. What's wrong with that?" Nemias questioned. His voice rang with a metallic echo that was common among techmarines.

The Blood Raven shrugged, "We help them, but we're not the paragons that your chapter pretends to be."

"You should all be more understanding of each other's beliefs. Nemias is right in the big picture. As space marines, we represent a great many things to the people of the Imperium. I do not think the Emperor intended for us to look down on regular citizens. Our primary purpose is to be humanity's greatest warriors, but we also stand for more than that. We stand for hope, faith, and justice. We are living embodiments of the Emperor's will...and constant reminders to the Imperium that the Emperor protects," the Blackshield marine spoke for the first time.

"Aye, for the Allfather," Viggo, the Space Wolf terminator, nodded.

"So long as Xenos and traitors die, then we're doing our job. Nothing else matters...period. Leave saving to the Imperial Guard," Gregorius said callouslly.

"That's such a Black Templar thing to say," Nemias shook his head with disappointment.

"I've heard enough arguing about this for one day...let it be done," Kallius interrupted with a stern voice.

"Regardless...I am not opposed to eating in the mess hall. That is assuming Brother Seiras and Brother Gregorius can both unlodge the bolters up their asses," the Blackshield replied.

"I'm amazed that you of all people would be in favor of interracting with normal humans again, Nogemo...they stare at you almost as much as me," Seiras said as he looked over at the Blackshield disbelievingly.

The Blackshield marine shrugged, "It does not bother me all that much. They are just curious for the most part."

"So you're all in favor of eating in the Mess Hall then? Fine..." Seiras said callously.

The Space Wolf of the group chuckled joyously, "Even if we can go another week without food, why should we? It's in the mess hall, so let's go get some while we can! Besides, it was your idea, Seiras."

"Not like we can really do much else until our quarters are set up..." Seiras sighed shaking his head, "but I guess it can't be helped. Enough arguing for now, let's go eat."

The Librarian unhooked his helmet from his armour and his psychic hood. He took his helmet off first and chained it to the waist of his armour. The others all followed suit and did the same before they departed from the hanger.

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Alright, so that was chapter 1. Hopefully it caught your interest. The first few will be a bit dialogue heavy, but rest assured that things will pick up soon.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Kill Team Calamity**

 _ **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Avenger of Terra**_ **Mess Hall XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Following behind Kallius and Seiras, the Astartes of Kill Team Calamity made their way through the ship looking for the mess hall. Random troops would freeze up and salute them with awe as they passed by. Some gave them cold glares, and others gossipped wildly about why armoured space marines were just wandering around the ship.

Seeing as how they were still in their armour, Seiras knew that it was going to cause quite the scene when the seven Astartes just randomly walked into a mess hall to get food. Thankfully they didn't have their weapons with them, because Emperor knows what kind of scene that would cause.

"Emperor, protect us..." Seiras said in preparation as he led the group into the large dining facility. As he expected, EVERY single person in the room immediately stopped talking, eating, and moving as they noticed the Deathwatch Marines enter. The large mess hall went deathly silent in less than a few seconds.

Seiras looked over at Kallius and whispered, "Lead the way, Sergeant..."

The Blood Angel nodded as he moved in first to the line. The troops in line in front of them all dispersed immediately and some of the younger ones looked so nervous that they just went to attention and saluted them.

"At ease, guardsmen...shipmen...we're just getting dinner. Don't mind us," Kallius tried to explain and ease the awkward tension in the room. Several of them calmed down and went on their way, but everyone was still staring. Seiras briefly glanced around the room and heard everyone starting to gossip about them.

The various reactions were all on opposite ends of the spectrum. Most of the guardsmen and ship crew appeared amazed, but a few looked somewhat annoyed or angry to see them. Seiras couldn't tell if it was because of the Inquisitorial seal on their armor, or if it was just because some of them didn't like space marines.

Considering how different guardsmen and Astartes were across the Imperium it spoke to reason that some of them had good or bad experiences with space marines and that all of them were going to have different opinions on the Inquisition as well. Seeing Deathwatch usually was a bad thing for regular people as it meant they were about to be neck deep in conflict.

Upon making eye contact with a table full of Stormtroopers, Seiras noticed them all give him short nods of acknowledgement. ' _They must be part of the assault mission to go with us_ ,' Seiras discerned as he nodded back.

The Tempestus Scions were all sitting isolated from the regular guardsmen and shipmen. Many of them looked tough, disciplined, and serious. They were not as reactive to seeing the Astartes as the rest of the crew was. Seiras did not know much about the Imperial Guard, but he did know that Stormtroopers were highly disliked by the regular guardsmen. It showed considering the huge gap around them on their part of a large table.

The people and servitors working behind the food line immediately began to cook faster as one of their leaders rushed to greet the space marines, "My lords...we...I apologize if we offended you. I had no idea we would be making food for space marines. Please, if there's anything you would like just let us know and we'll cook it ASAP. I-I don't know what you guys like."

"There's no need to stop what you're doing already. We'll just have what everyone else is eating...except maybe a few portions more. We're not picky," Kallius explained with a calm charisma. The workers seemed to relax after he did so.

"O-of course my lord. Once again please accept my humble apology for not being prepared. I am a failure as a cook," the worker said remorsefully.

"There's no need to apologize, good man. You're not expected to know everything or be perfect. Your duty is respectable and we appreciate your willingness to see us fed," Kallius replied empathetically.

His friendliness and empathy radiated throughout the workers there as they all began to beam with a bit of joy that a Space Marine was nice to them. Seiras always admired the Blood Angel sergeant for things like this. Kallius had a way with others that made the librarian wonder why he wasn't a Captain or a Chaplain. They had known each other the longest out of the entire Kill Team, and in that time Seiras had seen Kallius defuse tension time and again.

"They're so amazing...the Emperor's Angels eat mess hall food too?" One the guardsmen in the hall said with a star-eyed grin.

"I'm so glad I waited until this shift to eat," one of the shipmen said as she eyed the Astartes with enthusiasm.

Seiras heard a variety of other comments similar to those, but a sour faced Guardsmen shook his head as the people around him praised the Astartes. He whispered to a nearby buddy of his, "Pfft...fuckin mutant freaks getting their asses kissed all the time. Reminds me of my last tour,"

It was a muttered whisper to one of his buddies, but space marine hearing was very good and thanks to his Psyker enhanced senses, the librarian heard it clearly. Viggo being a space wolf likely heard it as well as some of the others. The space wolf didn't seem to care, as he was probably used to comments like that for his wolf like features, but Seiras on the other hand did care.

The Librarian made it a point to look at the guardsman who said it and stared at him. It did not happen often, but part of him always felt a bit annoyed when normal people would say things like that about space marines. However being a seasoned veteran, the Blood Raven had enough restraint and discipline to never say anything back. That being said, he still wanted the guardsman to know he heard him.

The insulting guardsman's buddy looked petrified as he elbowed him and pointed at Seiras. The guardsman who insulted the Astartes noticed the librarian staring at him. Seiras wasn't sure what kind of look was on his face, but the guardsman became terrified when he saw the Blood Raven staring from halfway across the room.

"Why do you guys look so scared all of a-" another guardsman asked them until she noticed Seiras was staring at their table and listening to their entire conversation from many meters away.

"Did that freak hear me from across the room?" the man whispered shocked. It was completely obvious that the Blood Raven did because now everyone at the table noticed Seiras' death glare.

"Leon, you dumb fuck...those are Deathwatch Astartes...Spec Ops Space Marines...they came with the Inquisitor. Don't talk shit. They have super good hearing you know and could kill you with a punch," a nearby guardsman whispered to the one that insulted the Astartes.

"Been nice knowin ya, Leon...what kind of an idiot insults a space marine?" another guardsman whispered from across the table to the man. It was clear that the one across the table was a higher ranking sergeant of some kind. The other people in the Mess Hall didn't seem to understand why Seiras was staring at a table until they all turned towards it and noticed the fearful look on Leon's face.

It was completely obvious now that the man had said something insulting and was heard. Half of them expected the space marine to go over and say something, but he didn't. Seiras simply looked back at the line and followed his Kill Team through it.

"Those guys aren't even human..." the guardsman, Leon, said quietly to his sergeant.

The guardsman sergeant shook his head, "You're right, Leon...they aren't. They're the Emperor's Angels. They dedicate their entire lives to war and they gave up their humanity so that we could keep ours. You should be more appreciative of their sacrifice."

Leon seemed somewhat remorseful, "I guess I never thought of it like that. I'm just tired of people alway praising them and forgetting about us. We still go and fight the same battles and enemies, but we're not super mutants with power armour and super weapons. They're no better than we are,"

"You'd rather they didn't exist then? The Emperor created them. Are you saying he was wrong? I for one like knowing that we have Angels watching over and helping us. Sorry your ego can't accept the fact that they get praised more than us," the sergeant shook his head.

"It's not my ego, sarge...I just wish people would appreciate us more, you know?" Leon said with a downcast stare.

"They do, Leon. But seeing an Angel is just a reminder of the Emperor's vigilance. Do you know how rare it is to see a space marine? Be thankful you even got to see them in person," the sergeant said sternly.

Seiras decided to tune out of their conversation as he moved behind Gregorius to the food line. One by one the space marines moved through the line to get their triple serving of food. It wasn't anything special, and to be honest, Seiras had no clue what half of it even was. He did not eat normal food very often. So to him it was simply a meal that he actually got to eat.

After the space marines got their food, they all looked around for somewhere to sit. The Mess Hall was thankfully quite large with good spacious areas between the tables. Most of their options looked impractical to sit at as they were either too small or very likely to break from the weight of their power armour. Many of the room's inhabitants stared at the Astartes anxiously wondering where they were going to sit if at all.

Luckily Seiras spotted a large metal table built into the ground which looked far sturdier than the others. It was also a bit isolated which seemed to suit his preference perfectly. The Blood Raven gestured for the others to follow him there.

It seemed kind of ridiculous for them to sit at a table in power armour or terminator armour, but thankfully the table looked like it would work out for them. They all sat down extra carefully, making sure they didn't damage the sturdy built-in steel table as they began to eat.

Seiras knew it must have looked crazy to the military personnel in the mess hall. Seven armoured Astartes were eating chow hall food at an oversized lunch table essentially. He had no idea how the table was supporting all of their weight, but chose not to think much about it.

The Salamander techmarine, Nemias, seemed to share his concern about the table and spoke, "It seems to be an officer table built for armoured personnel...the support structure goes into the floor. I'm amazed that its structural integrity hasn't given out yet. This table must have additional functions. It was clearly repurposed in the past."

 _'I wonder if we should have left our armour in the quarters? Are we going to upset some people by sitting at an officer's table?'_ Seiras wondered to himself as he watched his space wolf brother, Viggo aggressively attack his food. Every slight movement caused a creak which was no doubt due to his heavy weight in his terminator armour. The Space Wolf had the most experience at eating normal food out of all of them.

"Maybe we should have left our gear in the quarters," Nogemo said as he seemed to be having the same thought as Seiras.

Sergeant Kallius looked at him and frowned, "Perhaps...but we need to be ready at all times. This is fine."

"Is it appropriate for us to sit here though?" Nemias asked, "I think this is their officers' table,"

"Who cares what they think...I'm not moving for them or taking off my armour on an Imperial Navy ship just to eat. Besides this is the only place to sit in here," Gregorius muttered.

"Eating in Terminator armour is difficult..." Decimus said as he struggled to pick up the undersized utensils to eat his food. Finally he just gave up and picked up some slab of meat with his index finger and thumb. He dropped a few pieces and crushed several other parts of food on his tray. He immediately crushed part of his tray and growled to himself.

The Terminator seemed to be getting frustrated and soon took a break to watch how Viggo was eating so effectively in his terminator armour.

Viggo shook his head dishearteningly, "Shame we can't drink...makes me miss Fenris. What's eating without drinking? I don't have any Fenrisian Ale with me."

"You can drink after we complete the mission brother Viggo." Kallius said as he calmly ate his food.

As he expected, Seiras saw the congregation of onlookers still staring. A nearby table looked like they were trying to pressure one of their friends into approaching the Astartes.

Finally they succeeded as they motioned for a timid female guardsman to walk up to the group. Her friends all seemed to be giggling and grinning as they watched her clumsily approach the space marines at their isolated table.

Some of the guardsmen from earlier were shaking their heads and making death gestures as if she was asking for trouble by approaching the Space Marines. Seiras could even see a few of the Stormtroopers facepalming at her for it.

"Umm hey, space marines. Uhh...how are you doing? It's nice weather we're having yeah? You guys sure look cool in your armour. Umm I," she stuttered fearfully through a sentence trying to find something to talk to them about. It was clear that she was nervous beyond belief, and their various reactions were no doubt making it worse.

' _Nice weather? What is this shipwreck of an introduction? Why is this girl over here? I thought I scared everyone in here from talking to us?'_ Seiras thought confused.

"I mean, well we're on a ship so there isn't really weather right? Haha, I mean it's just nice out... I mean around here right now...on the ship. You guys are really big," She continued saying random things.

' _This is so hard for me to watch...what is she a little girl?'_ the Librarian wondered as the female guardsman blushed embarrassedly at the now laughing onlookers. Her face was super red and she looked like she was about to die from embarrassment.

"What possible reason would you have to talk to us, guardsman?" Seiras asked somewhat bluntly. He wasn't giving her a mean look or anything, but his tone definitely seemed to frighten her somewhat.

She didn't speak for a few seconds which was understandable and stared at Seiras with wide eyes. Although her introduction was quite embarrassing and pitiful, Seiras still found her to be braver than some of the other guardsmen who couldn't even make eye contact with the Astartes without looking away.

"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to bother you guys. I just wanted to talk to you, Blood Raven," She said shamefully looking away, "I...I should go. Sorry for wasting your time, space marines."

' _She knows I'm a Blood Raven? Most guardsmen don't know all of the chapter symbols. Maybe she's from Sub-Sector Aurelia_?' Seiras thought confused.

"She wanted to talk to you...Blood Raven," the Salamander Nemias laughed quietly after the female guardsman was out of their range.

Seiras watched her sit down and bury her face in embarrassment from her laughing peers. The librarian looked at Nemias and shook his head, "Don't even say it, Nemias..."

"Another admirer for our librarian haha. You're the one she approached. I'm surprised she had the courage to after you stared the room into submission," the Salamander chuckled.

"Maybe Seiras is her type," Viggo chuckled. Of all the members on their team, Viggo and Nemias had the most understanding of how normal human behavior worked. Their chapters were well known for interracting with Imperial guardsmen and civilians. Seiras had a decent understanding of people, but not nearly as much as they did. This was mostly due to his aloof nature as a librarian.

Seiras let out a low displeased growl, "That's not even funny..."

"Ha, that reminds me of last time. Wasn't that guardsman a female too? No wait...it was a female commissar. Remember when she got mad at Seiras for complimenting her fighting skills?" Viggo chuckled.

Nemias chuckled, "I remember...and then Seiras just told her that he thought she was 'interesting.'"

Seiras lowered his head and sighed, "Just stop..."

"Hahaha! That's right, and then she said, 'Are you interested in me?'" Viggo laughed heartily.

The techmarine let out cybornetic echoing laughter as he nodded, "Seiras told her that she was the most interesting woman he had seen in years and that he admired the way she wielded weapons and authority. He told her that he'd be even more impressed if she could wield his weapon."

Viggo laughed almost hysterically, "The funniest part is when she said, 'I could wield your weapon if you really want me to,' and Seiras told her, 'you're going to need two hands and a lot of stamina to wield my force sword.' Then she just said, 'Later in private,' and all of the Guardsmen cheered for Seiras after she left. That was such a great mission."

The Salamander chuckled as he looked at Seiras, "I find it ironic that brother Seiras, who seems to not care about normal people, is very good at getting them to like him."

"I don't see what's funny about this. Why do you tell this story all the time?" Seiras said unamused as he looked between the Wolf and the Salamander.

Viggo and Nemias couldn't help but snicker and laugh at Seiras again as the others all sat in silence. Although nobody from other tables could hear the space marines' conversation, they could certainly hear the space wolf laughing.

"I'm surprised you remembered all of that considering you were blackout drunk..." Seiras sighed.

"It was a victory celebration with the guardsmen, Seiras. A Fenrisian tradition," the Space Wolf countered.

Gregorius cocked his head confused, "Brother Seiras actually said those things to a commissar?"

"Yeah, and he wonders why the Imperial Guard on that mission liked him so much. They all said he was the 'greatest man' they had ever seen for being able to seduce their commissar," Viggo laughed.

"I did no such thing...besides, I don't see how that applies here. Why would that girl want to talk to me? She doesn't even know me or have a reason to talk to me," Seiras changed the subject.

Decimus seemed to be sharing Seiras' attitude at the situation as he looked over at the gossipping guardsmen, "Why is it always the female ones that approach him first? Are normal human women less fearful than men?"

"I'd certainly say so," Gregorius nodded, "Sororitas are living proof of that. They're the only females besides female Inquisitors and commissars that aren't useless unfortunately. I still can't fathom what her reason for approaching brother Seiras was."

"This happens a lot when Seiras is around. Was it some kind of attempt at courtship?" Decimus asked uncertainly.

"Who knows what that was all about...I'm a librarian and even I can't figure out how normal people think. I think maybe she's from sub-sector Aurelia. She knew I was a Blood Raven," Seiras said shaking his head.

"Oi, you lot are really lost aren't ya? The reason this always happens is because Seiras is too damned pretty for a space marine," Viggo laughed.

Seiras narrowed his gaze, "I'm what now? This is the first time I'm hearing this. The idea of a space marine being attractive to a normal person is ridiculous."

"Now that he mentions it, you are probably attractive to them. You certainly were to that commissar. I distinctly remember her face was flushed," Nemias noted.

"You're imagining things. It most certainly was not," Seiras replied bluntly.

Viggo chuckled at his denial, "Well she certainly wasn't acting very Commissar-like around you. They got high discipline and bearing. So it doesn't take a genius to figure out what that was all about, haha."

"I don't know why you two always have to go there. This running joke has gotten really old," Seiras replied with a serious expression.

"Blood Angels are a good judge of beauty. What do you think Sergeant Kallius? Is Seiras good looking for an Astartes?" Nemias asked.

Kallius turned towards Seiras for a moment, "Let me put it this way...when Seiras and I met for the first time, my fellow Blood Angels in the first company mistook him for one of us when his chapter was looting a Space Hulk."

"Of course you met Seiras when he was looting a space hulk, haha," Viggo laughed in amusement.

"What? Your Chapter brothers know him?" Nogemo asked curiously.

The Blood Angel nodded, "Yes, the first company knows him. He assisted us in recovering gene-seed while his chapter was looting a space hulk. This was before either one of us joined Deathwatch. Seiras got along surprisingly well with our first company, which is surprising since our first company doesn't like many other chapters."

"So they thought mistook him for a Blood Angel because they thought he was good looking?" Nemias clarified.

Kallius nodded, "Yes, they did."

"That still does not explain why normal human females would be attracted to him. How is he attractive to them? What defines being attractive anyways? I would assume most would think the opposite of Seiras since he's a psyker and an Astartes." Gregorius asked as he looked at Seiras.

"Normal humans don't really know what librarians are. I doubt anyone in here knows he's a psyker. They aren't exactly common. My chapter only has about 20 or so. To normal people, Seiras is probably just an attractive Space Marine I imagine," Nemias added.

"If you say so," Gregorius noted as he looked at Seiras again.

The Librarian had an aesthetic masculine face with a strong jaw, medium length white hair that came down the sides of his psychic hood and sea-green eyes. A large jagged scar could be seen from the side of his head all the way across his right cheek. This scar intersected with another one down the side of his eye. He also had two small metal plates on the sides of his head near his ears where the librarian's skull had no doubt been modified to accept psy cables. Hair still seemed to grow around them oddly enough which made them blend in better. Seiras also had two gold service studs embedded in the side of his forehead which denoted two centuries of service in his Chapter.

"What does his appearance have to do with that girl coming over here? What attracted her to him?" Decimus asked Viggo.

"It's all about presence and physical features I think...although the girls on Fenris have different likes than these little wimpy girls around here. I remember the last time this happened a girl came up to Seiras said he had pretty eyes and was cute. It's stuff like that I think." Viggo explained.

"Cute?" Gregorius repeated confused as if the word was some type of evil alien term.

The librarian shook his head, "Please stop retelling everyone this nonsense...it's bad enough I can't forget anything, I don't need to be reminded constantly. My appearance doesn't mean anything."

"Regardless of that, I fail to see anything special about Seiras other than him being a librarian. Librarians in general aren't even necessary. My chapter doesn't have librarians...they're pointless if you ask me," Gregorius noted.

"Well Seiras is pretty decent as far as sorcerers go. I wouldn't call him pointless. At least he fights like a warrior," Viggo defended him.

It was unusual to see, because Seiras could still vividly remember how long it took for him and the Space Wolf to start getting along. He hoped Gregorius would eventually settle into the team, but being its newest member and a Black Templar, he knew that would take a while. Being a librarian on a Kill Team with chapters that hated psykers was a very interesting predicament.

"Seiras, doesn't your chapter have a lot of librarians? Our librarius mentioned something about it once before. Are librarians more valued among the Blood Ravens?" Kallius asked changing the subject.

The Blood Raven nodded, "They're highly valued among my chapter. We have several assigned to each company usually. The numbers have changed over the years, but we have a lot more than your chapters do. If we're counting the Acolytum and the Lexicanium in training then we had 62 librarians last I heard. Before...the Tyrannid attack in Sub-Sector Aurelia we had more, but a lot of the higher ranking Epistolaries died. We always have at least two Codiciers per company and usually Lexicanium and Acolytum assigned to them and the Company Chaplains. Our Librarians work closely with our Chaplains."

"I imagine that is not a coincidence. Who better than to keep a vigilant watch over psykers than a chaplain?" Gregorius interrupted.

"I'm sure you're correct about that brother Gregorius, but we have had a librarian chaplain before too. It's very rare, but every couple of centuries a special librarian distinguishes himself enough to hold another title as well as his librarian one. It's a great honour..." Seiras said distantly.

"A librarian chaplain? That's the most absurd thing I've ever heard...those two positions are far too different for one individual to hold. Not to mention, it's an insult to the Emperor for a librarian to be a chaplain. It sounds like your chapter is nothing but a sorcerer cult," Gregorius said disapprovingly.

"Like I said, it's very rare...but some of my chapter's greatest heroes achieved a similar duality. It's not impossible. We've had Captains who were librarians, Chief Librarians who were Chapter Masters, and we've even had one Librarian who was a Reclusiarch as well," Seiras shrugged.

"Don't tell me you want to be the same? I would never take you seriously as a librarian AND a chaplain," Gregorius replied rudely.

"Relax, Gregorius, I highly doubt someone like me would be suitable for the task. All I was saying is a prestigious and loyal enough librarian could achieve it," Seiras responded calmly.

"Maybe in that crazy psyker cult you call the Blood Ravens...but nonsense like that would never fly in my chapter. So who were you then before joining Deathwatch, Brother Seiras? You must have been someone important in your chapter if you were able to impress the Inquisition and get selected for a Deathwatch Kill Team," Gregorius asked.

"I was an Epistolary in the first company and was part of a special team called the Corvidae Ordo Psykana. Before that I served in the fourth company as a Lexicanium and eventally a Codicier. Captain Thule, Epistolary Anteas, and Chaplain Mikelus were all my commanding officers then. When I went to the first company, the team they put me in was a special psyker team. We would often perform secret missions for the Chief Librarian and Chapter Master. It was during that time that I met Sergeant Kallius as well," Seiras explained.

"So if you were from the Blood Ravens' first company before joining Deathwatch, then why don't you wear Terminator armour?" Gregorius asked.

"Mine was badly damaged in the last campaign. Terminator armour is pretty rare in my chapter. Only the most prestigious first company veterans usually get to wear it...and even then, not often. We only ever wear it for special missions. I gave mine to our techmarines to repair. I'm sure they've probably fixed it by this point, but I haven't returned to the Chapter in years. It's not a major concern for me right now and I'm sure my brothers need it more than I do," The librarian replied.

"How did you get those scars on your face?" the Black Templar asked as he continued to examine the Blood Raven.

"Is this an interrogation?" Seiras said somewhat annoyed.

Kallius looked at Seiras' defining facial scars, "I remember when you got those scars. That Eldar sure did leave a mark on you, Seiras."

"So it was a xenos that did it?" Gregorius asked.

Seiras nodded, "Yes, an Eldar did it."

"Not like it mattered much...now Seiras just looks more manly. All he needs is a beard and even the girls from Fenris might like him...even though he's not a wolf and he's a bloody sorcerer. Seiras' pretty ass could use a few more scars," Viggo said as he stuffed food down his mouth again.

Viggo himself was very much a space wolf in appearance. He had long auburn hair pulled into twin braids on either side of his face with a large ponytail holding up most in the back. A large and surprisingly well groomed beard was also present as well. It was long, but not ridiculous like some space wolf beards were. As it was common among space wolves, he had pale yellow eyes and fangs. He had many scars like all of them, but his most noticeable one was a scar from cheek to cheek and over his nose.

Sergeant Kallius had a strong and very handsome face with parted short blonde hair, ocean blue eyes, and a surprisingly unscarred appearance. The only prominent scar on him was a large slash across his throat which was no doubt the work of a blade. Like most Blood Angels, he had the angelic beauty of his gene-father Sanguinius. Nevertheless, he was definitely the one who looked like he had seen the most battle. The seasoned veteran had eyes that were distant and looked like they told a long and painful story. He was the second oldest marine on their team, but did not wear any service studs.

Seiras looked over at his Salamander brother, "Your scars are from an eldar too right, Nemias?"

"Dark Eldar. Trust me there's a big difference. This was given to me by a Cult of Stife Wych," Nemias clarified as he stared down at his food as if deep in thought.

The Salamander techmarine had many cybornetic enhancements including a built over visor on one of his eyes. Two large cross shaped scars covered and converged over his cybernetic visor which likely indicated the wych cut it out. Nemias had a darker skin tone like most Salamanders, a bald head, and a normal dark red eye. Despite his cybornetic attachments and scars, he still looked rather friendly and approachable. His techmarine armour also had tech arm extensions coming from the back which had a large number of utility uses.

Seiras shook his head, "I hate Eldar...of all the xenos in the galaxy, they're the worst."

"Glad we can agree on that...Eldar are insufferable and deserve nothing short of genocidal exterminatus. They're more arrogant than any xenos I've encountered. Probably more so than all of them combined," Gregorius spoke with intensity.

Gregorius had short black hair, a strong jaw, and a bit of stubble. His eyes were a light shade of bluish grey, and he had several burn scars on his face. Despite his apparance, he still would be considered attractive by human standards if he wasn't always scowling. He seemed to be radiating a permanent hatred that would no doubt make anyone who wasn't a space marine uneasy around him.

"Agreed...the things that their race does to mankind is unforgivable. Vulkan himself despised them wholeheartedly," Nemias said approvingly.

"Which variety do you think is worse brothers? Craftworld Eldar, or Dark Eldar?" Seiras wondered.

"They're all the same as far as I'm concerned," Gregorius said hatefully.

"Craftworlders are a joke compared to Dark Eldar," Nemias said shaking his head, "I'd like to see you fight an Incubus or a wych and tell me they're the same, Gregorius. They're the only ones that fight like warriors. The rest just run away whenever Astartes show up."

"I don't know, Nemias...some of those Howling Banshees are pretty mean. Striking Scorpions are strong warriors as well. The rest of them are skittish cowards though," Seiras replied.

"It all depends on the Craftworld I guess. You have fought Biel-tan and Ulthwe right? They're some of the deadliest craftworlds, so I suppose they might have some warriors who don't break in one hit. That being said, if I had to compare a craftworld banshee to a dark eldar wych I would say the wych is far more deadly. Most of them barely fight in actual armour because they're so hard to hit," Nemias replied after swallowing a large chunk of food.

"Harlequinns are the worst of them all. I lost many brothers to a pack of those creatures. I also got several of my scars from one of them. They're the only faction of Eldar that both Craftworlders and Dark Eldar do not cross," Kallius interjected.

"I hope you killed that Harlequinn fiend," Nogemo said anxiously.

Kallius nodded, "I did...to avenge my brothers I ripped out her heart and butchered the rest of them. They are like glass cannons. Deadly, but extremely fragile."

Seiras knew better than the rest of his brothers how this probably happened. Being a veteran Blood Angel, Kallius like many, suffered from mild effects of the Red Thirst and went into a rampage to wipe them out. The two of them had known each other the longest, and Seiras had seen Kallius and other Blood Angels fall into this bloodlust. He had enough respect and knowledge on the matter to not to ask about it as he simply pat the Blood Angel on the back, "Good on you, Sergeant Kallius. Suffer not the xenos to live."

Viggo looked up from his meal and laughed, "What's with all of you getting cut up by Eldar? Was that some hidden requirement to be on this kill team...because that's where my biggest scar came from too."

"What kind of Eldar was it?" Seiras asked.

"I don't know...it had wings and it flew around me like a bug tryin to sting me," Viggo laughed.

"Swooping Hawk?" Seiras asked.

"Why are you asking me? You think I know what they're all called? I ripped his wings off and stomped on his head until he died. Stupid xenos squealed and died like a bug," Viggo laughed

"Regardless of what kind it was, this just goes to show that Eldar are never to be trusted or underestimated...period. They should always be killed on sight without pity or mercy. There is no honour and no empathy within the husks they call souls. Eldar only care about themselves," Kallius replied sternly.

"At least we can deal with Eldar relatively well. They're weak and they break like sticks. Necrons and Tyrannids on the other hand aren't so fun for psykers to fight and are damn near impossible to take out without heavy firepower or strong power weapons," Seiras sighed.

"Well it's good you're melee trained then. That's the only reason I don't consider you a wimpy little sorcerer, Seiras. Sometimes I think you'd make a good Grey Knight," Viggo said with a grin. It was no secret to any of them that Seiras hated being compared to the Grey Knights as he had a similar fighting style as them.

"Don't even compare me to those high and mighty bastards." Seiras muttered to himself in annoyance.

"Tau are the only race I hate more than Eldar," Kallius said darkly changing the subject.

Gregorius cracked a fist, "Tau...I almost forgot that those _things_ even existed...you want to talk about a vile and pathetic xenos race."

"I've never fought them before...but I know wolves who have," Viggo said as he stopped eating for a moment.

"Neither have I. From what I've heard, they sound easy to defeat," Nogemo added.

Seiras turned to look at the Blackshield curiously, "You think so? They're relatively easy to kill up close, but the problem is they run away and hide more than Eldar. It's the equivalent of wiping out vermin from a hive."

"I'll take your word for it then," the Blackshield replied.

Seiras stared at him for a moment afterward. Although he would never mention it aloud, Seras was always suspicious of the Blackshield. Partly it was because Blood Ravens disliked having secrets witheld from them, and Nogemo was full of them. It was Deathwatch policy never to question a Blackshield's past as most came from traitor chapters, but Seiras would often cross-examine his companion in the hopes that he would one day find out. Nogemo did not talk much as opposed to the rest of them, which only made him more mysterious. He was the second newest member of Kill Team Calamity other than Gregorius but was undoubtedly the oldest.

The Blackshield Marine, Nogemo, was remarkably unscarred and untainted looking despite being a from a traitor chapter, which made it unlikely he ever fell to chaos. This was a defining feature that allowed Seiras to mostly trust him. He had copper skin, piercing aquamarine eyes and was bald. He looked very seasoned and wise, and was likely the oldest marine on their team. Oddly enough, he was the largest space marine in their group, even larger than Decimus and Viggo in terminator armour. That in itself alway struck Seiras as odd becuase the two terminators were fairly large for Astartes as it was. Nogemo had a calm and commanding presence, but was definitely unusual. Nobody in the kill team actually knew what his former chapter was, but given the Blackshield's unquestioning loyalty and skill in battle, they all trusted him well enough. Despite his suspicions of the man's past, Seiras valued him as a battle brother.

"Why do you hate Tau more than Eldar, Sergeant Kallius?" Nogemo asked curiously.

Kallius shook his head, "They corrupt Imperial Citizens and try to indoctrinate them with some strange ideology called the Greater Good. Greater Pacification would be a better way to describe it. They make humans part of their empire, but force them into the lowest tier of their societies and force them to fight on the frontline for their xenos overlords. What's even worse is I heard that they sterillize humans they capture so they cannot reproduce. It's a cowardly and cancerous race that should be removed from the galaxy. Any race that seeks to subjectify and enslave humans to its philosophies is worse than even chaos."

"The Imperium enslaves and brainwashes its own citizens all the time. I fail to see how it's any different when some minor xenos race does it. You don't see the hypocrisy there?" Nogemo said shaking his head.

Kallius sent him a fierce glare, "It's NOT the same, Nogemo. The Imperium is far from perfect, but it preserves mankind. Those who cast aside their faith in mankind for the greener grasses and pretty lies promised by a xenos, cannot count themselves as human any longer. It's the equivalent of rejecting the Emperor's vision for a united humanity."

"Sergeant Kallius is right," Gregorius nodded, "we cannot trust an alien species to have our best interest at heart. Only a heretical fool and an indulgent coward would allow another race to control their destiny. You're already on my bad side, Blackshield...don't start making me think you're a xenos sympathizer!"

"I'm not, but I can understand why some people in the lowest common tiers of society would think that way. The Imperium has changed a lot over the millennia, but it has endured time and again. This xenos race hardly sounds like a threat. They can't be that big if we're not fighting them right now," Nogemo noted.

"Currently, they're a small empire, of little more than a few hundred worlds in Segmentum Ultima. They are on the border of Ultramar. In the grand scheme they're no threat to the Imperium at large, but they are aggressive expansionists who need to be put down at some point," Kallius continued.

"We should be thankful the Emperor wiped out many other races in the Great Crusade...or we would see dozens of species like them roaming the stars. They don't sound like much of a threat to me, so I don't think you should get so worked up over this," Nogemo replied.

"I fought Tau during the Kronus Campaign with Captain Thule...and several other times with the Ultramarines. They're about as arrogant as Eldar, but far less dangerous. They rely on machines and technology to fight...but they lack real killer instinct. The cowards won't even fight you up close. They are physically pathetic as melee fighters so they only shoot from afar and run. Like I said, before...they're vermin both literally and figuratively," Seiras added with a disgusted look on his face.

"They don't fight in melee combat? How can you even call that a threat? The wolves are probably their worst nightmare then..." Viggo said seriously.

"They don't even know a thing about Psyker powers or the warp either. They never saw my powers coming until it was too late. I killed a lot of them during that Campaign. I slaughtered them with ease," Seiras said drifting into deep thought.

"I never asked you, Seiras, but do you happen to know a marine named Cyrus from your chapter? He was the only other Blood Raven I ever knew personally in Deathwatch besides you." Kallius asked curiously.

Seiras nodded, "I did...he saved my life before. He is quite the deadly scout. He recommended me to the Inquisition for Deathwatch. Said I had a way with outsmarting Xenos."

"He had quite the iconic headful of hair if I remember correctly. Is that common among Blood Ravens?" Kallius wondered with a hand on his chin.

"Not really...at least I don't think so. Although he always did try to sell the rest of us on having hair. He eventually talked me into growing mine out. I was bald for the first century of my service," Seiras chuckled as he felt his white hair.

"It's hard to imagine you bald, Seiras. Every Blood Raven I've met has had hair," Kallius said as he stared at his comrade.

Decimus looked around at all of his Kill Team brothers and changed the subject, "You know I never thought much on it, but why do all of you have so much hair? Does that not make it difficult for you to fight?"

Nemias laughed at his random question, "Hey now, I'm bald too, Decimus. You're not the only one without hair around here."

Decimus was the second largest member of their group after Nogemo. While mostly it was due to his Terminator armour, he was still quite large for a Terminator when compared to Viggo. Decimus also had the strongest jawline many of them had ever seen. He was completely bald with many facial scars and had a slightly tanner complexion than the rest of them, except Nemias. Strange tribal markings also covered part of his face, and his eyes were a fiery amber color. Decimus was the most intimidating member of their group followed closely by Gregorius and then Viggo.

"Same here. There's nothing wrong with being bald. Some of us can pull it off quite well," Nogemo chuckled.

"I only do it because it helps me fight better. I don't know how Viggo fits all of his into that Terminator helmet," Decimus said looking at the other terminator.

"It's called being a Space Wolf. We're pretty much good at everything. We usually don't even wear helmets, but Deathwatch insisted that I started to so I make it work. It might be easier if I start braiding it though," Viggo laughed.

"Why not just cut it off?" Decimus asked.

"You wouldn't understand, Decimus. Hair and beards are important to Wolves ya know," Viggo said proudly.

"Don't even try to talk me into going bald again, Decimus," Seiras stated.

"Being bald is not so bad. I mean some of us can pull it off better than others. Nogemo certainly pulls it off the best. In my case its just convenient not to worry about it. The last time I had hair, it got caught in all my tech attachments. Other parts just got burnt off so it's just easier to be bald for me," Nemias replied.

"Enough about hair. I want to know how an Eldar gave Seiras those scars," Gregorius changed the subject as he looked at the librarian.

"I remember how he got it. It was before you joined the Kill Team, Gregorius. Some Banshee with an executioner spear cut through his helmet and face twice. She looked prominent compared to the others. I remember her calling Seiras by name when trying to kill him," Decimus answered for him.

"Why did that Xenos know his name? And what do you mean she was prominent?" Gregorius asked curiously.

Seiras shook his head, "It was a Howling Banshee Exarch from the Craftworld Saim-Hann. It was pretty obvious because the cloth on her armor was red. She also had hair the color of fire. It was almost a golden orange. If that doesn't distinguish her from regular banshees, she was also carrying an executioner and I'm pretty sure only their exarchs carry those."

"You seem to know a lot about eldar for someone who claims to hate them. How did this exchange occur to begin with?" Gregorius asked disapprovingly.

"Well it very strange honestly. We were on a mission to assassinate an up and coming ork warboss when those eldar showed up. Call me crazy, but I think they were there to kill me specifically. The exarch that cut me knew my name as Decimus has stated. I guess one of their Farseers thought I was dangerous or something," Seiras explained.

"Don't play dumb, Seiras. Just tell him the whole story. Tell him about your _discovered treasure_..." Nemias chuckled with amusement.

"They were after some artefact that brother Seiras recovered right?" Decimus asked.

"Something he _found_ no doubt...a new _gift_ for his chapter." Viggo said shaking his head with laughter.

Gregorius looked at him suspiciously, "Did you steal some xenos relic they wanted, brother Seiras?"

The librarian shrugged, "Steal is such a harsh word. All I had that they wanted was just some old stuff I found decades ago on Typhon Primaris."

"Stop being elusive, Seiras...tell him the truth. He's going to find out eventually. Better now than later," Nemias insisted.

"Find out what?!" Gregorius asked darkly.

"So I found a spirit stone with some ancient, dead Eldar in it as well as some type of Eldar tech device with maps and database information. I was on a secret mission to investigate the crashed craftworld beneath the jungle of Typhon Primaris with our techmarines for anything useful," Seiras clarified.

"Your psyker loving chapter sent you to loot a crashed craftworld? What kind of heretical order is that? You approve of this, Decimus?!" Gregorius repeated quietly with a disapproving look on his face.

"Let him finish the story...it's not as bad as it sounds," Decimus replied.

"After my Investigation and discovery-" Seiras tried to continue.

" _Looting_ ," Viggo interrupted him with a cough.

"Discovery...I found those things there and spent decades trying to decipher the data device. It became clear I wouldn't be able to figure it out on my own, so I tortured the eldar in the Spirit Stone with warp energy and forced him to tell me how to work the device. I used it and the eldar in the stone to eventually decipher their stupid language a bit. It was also good for picking up their version of vox transmissions so that we could better outmanuever them. I'm not the most technologically gifted, but I eventually got the hang of how to use their technology against them. I have a base understanding of their technology and language because of it and I could use the stone to power their things of theirs. I kept it a secret for a long time from most of the chapter, but it helped me a lot in fighting Eldar throughout my campaigns. I suppose that might explain why the Eldar wanted to kill me...and why the Ordo Xenos was interested in recruiting me." Seiras whispered only loud enough for his fellow space marines to hear.

"That's heresy messing with Xenos tech...and speaking to one in a soul stone. Are you out of your mind, brother? That's evidence enough for being a heretic. I've seen men die for doing less than one tenth of that. How in the Emperor's name did you get away with it?" Gregorius whispered darkly. Luckily it wasn't loud enough to draw attention from the ship crew in the mess hall.

"Are you calling me a heretic, Gregorius? I guarantee I've killed more enemies of mankind than you have. I've fought Orks, Eldar, Tau, Tyrannids, Chaos Marines, Daemons, and even Necrons...you're not one to judge me for being a bit proactive in countering xenos tech. The Inquisition does it all the time. Part of the reason I got accepted into Deathwatch is because of my insight into the Eldar. The Inquisition already knows about it. You cannot defeat an enemy that you do not understand. I am a librarian and it is my duty to understand and collect knowledge for the betterment of my chapter and mankind itself," Seiras said quietly.

"Your former chapter master was a proactive librarian too from what I heard...and we all know how that turned out. You're lucky the others like you, Brother Seiras, but I will be the first person to kill you if I ever see you committing heresy like that in front of me," Gregorius hissed darkly.

The Blood Raven glared at him, "Do you know how many of my own chapter brothers I had to kill to purge the corruption within the Blood Ravens? Brothers I fought alongside for nearly two centuries died by my hand. That heresy will forever stain the honour of my chapter, but those of us who remain cannot be counted among the unfaithful. My faith has been tested far more than yours. You would do well to remember that the next time you think me unloyal to the Emperor or the Imperium, Gregorius."

"Curious psykers always dabble in heresy. Your faith will be tested even more, brother. I will make sure of that," Gregorius said threateningly.

"That's enough...I will not hear any more of this. I trust Seiras with my life...and if you wish to remain on this team, you must as well, Gregorius," Sergeant Kallius interrupted quietly.

The Black Templar gave Seiras a hard stare before nodding at Sergeant Kallius, "As you say, Watch Sergeant...if the Inquisition allowed it and the rest of you trust him then I shall tolerate his existence. Back on the topic of the Eldar, what ever happened to those Saim-Hann assassins? Did you kill them all?"

"They got away unfortunately...but that's not surprising considering all Eldar know how to do is run away when they're fighting real opponents." Seiras said now speaking at normal volume again.

"Saim-Hann is known for hit and run tactics. That's not too suprising," Nemias added.

Gregorius shook his head hatefully, "Xenos cowards. So what happened to the Spirit Stone and the data device then?"

"I gave the data device to the Ordo Xenos after I downloaded all of the information off of it for my chapter. I neglected to mention that to them. The copied information was left with the Librarius. Captain Angelos seemed especially interested in it. As for the stone, I kept it." Seiras explained.

"You did?" Gregorius asked darkly, "Why? Where is it?"

Seiras reached onto a chain off of the waist of his armor and picked up a a red fist sized stone, "It's right here..."

"I always wondered what that thing was. The Inquisition lets you keep it?" Gregorius asked disbelievingly.

"After giving them a translated dataslate of Eldar Knowledge, yes. The Ordo Xenos were very grateful. They said I could keep the stone," Seiras explained.

"That's unprecedented. They must have really liked what you gave them then, because I have never heard of the Inquisition allowing something like that. Not to mention, why did you even want to keep the stone?" the Black Templar asked.

"It powers Eldar technology...and I can use it for a lot of different things," Seiras replied.

Kallius shook his head, "It's no wonder the Eldar wanted you dead for having something like that."

Gregorius shook his head, "Does it talk?"

"Only Psychically...and only if I force him to. I haven't talked to the stone in about ten years," Seiras replied.

"How in the name of Holy Terra are you able to get away with so much borderline heresy? You're probably the luckiest idiot I've ever met." Gregorius said shaking his head.

Gregorius and Nogemo were the newest members of their Kill Team and were the only ones that did not know about this already. They both stared at Seiras with varying degrees of disbelief. In Nogemo's case, he actually seemed impressed, "You can speak the Eldar language?"

"Not in the overly complicated way they do, but I can speak it in a basic way. More importantly, I can understand it...having perfect memory and psychic abilities helps a lot in that regard," Seiras elaborated.

The Blackshield nodded approvingly, "I can see why the Inquisition values you then. I've never heard of a space marine learning a xenos language."

"It's heretical...am I the only one who thinks this is a bad thing? How is he immune to the consequences of doing this kind of thing?" Gregorius asked disbelievingly.

Viggo shrugged, "Good question. I've been asking that for years, but so long as he doesn't go xenos loving on us then I don't really care."

"Seiras is no heretic...the Ordo Xenos has personally granted him permission to study aliens because of that information he gave them. Under normal circumstances it would be full fledged heresy, but since the Inquisition allows it, I don't see a problem," Decimus added.

"I think it's very intelligent to do. Eldar would never suspect an Astartes to know their language. You continue to surprise me, Seiras. I'm glad I got put on this Kill Team with you brothers," Nogemo said with a smile.

"I'm already regretting it," Gregorius said shaking his head.

"Umm...excuse me," a voice interrupted the space marines from their conversation.

The seven Astartes looked over at the new arrival who was obviously a ship officer of some kind. He had a twinkling excitement in his eyes as he nervously met their gazes.

"Can we help you?" Seiras asked.

The officer nodded his head, "Forgive me for interrupting you my lords, but I was just wondering if it would be okay to ask you a few questions. I've never seen space marines before."

"We get that a lot, Lieutenant is it? Have a seat, I don't mind answering some questions." Nemias checked the officer's rank before gesturing for him to sit down. The mess hall seemed to refocus all of its attention towards the Astartes again. They were likely all shocked that the space marines let the low ranking officer sit there with them.

The officer sat down next to Kallius and looked over the enormous super humans with awe. He took a moment to take in their appearances and finally spoke, "When I was a kid, my parents used to tell me stories about space marines. I always kind of thought they were just tall tales and exaggerations to boost Imperial morale. Seeing you guys in person is something else though. You're every bit as huge as the stories say you are."

"You thought space marines were a tall tale?" Viggo asked surprised.

"Well...I knew they existed, but I had no idea you were actually as big as the stories said you were. The idea of a human being almost two and a half meters tall and completely muscled and armoured always seemed crazy to imagine. I just assumed it was an exaggeration. I see now that it wasn't," the Lieutenant explained apologetically.

"What kind of decadent world are you from that would allow for such a ridiculous idea to cross your mind? Who else do you think gets anything done in our endless wars? Who else conquered the known galaxy in the name of the Emperor during the Great Crusade? Why would you think we were lesser than that? Why would you think we were anything like you? We do-" Gregorius replied rudely before being interrupted.

Kallius held up his hand, "That's enough, Gregorius. No need to be hostile."

The lieutenant appeared somewhat frightened by the Black Templar's utter lack of mercy or empathy. He was no doubt relieved that the other space marines weren't as mean.

Viggo quickly eased tensions as he chuckled, "The Imperium's a large place, it's understandable if you haven't seen space marines. Don't mind Brother Gregorius...he's an asshole as the guard would say and doesn't talk to normal people much."

"I...see," the officer said as he looked over at the glaring Black Templar.

"So you had questions?" Seiras got the conversation moving again after an awkward silence. Half the mess hall seemed to be doing their best to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"How does one become a space marine? How did you transition into an Adeptus Astartes?" the lieutenant wondered.

"We're chosen as children or adolescents if we're tough enough and compatible. A lot of the process is classified for obvious reasons, but we become Astartes after puberty and before early adulthood usually. Adults can become space marines, but it's nearly always fatal. Only those with pure human genes can become Astartes as well. So you'll never see an abhuman or a mutant become one. Women cannot become Astartes as well due to an incompatability with the process. This is in part due to the fact that it's based around the Emperor's genetics and he's male," Kallius replied.

The man seemed amazed, "I also heard that space marines don't age the way normal people do. How old are all of you?"

"Most of us here are over two centuries old. Gregorius here is about 150 I believe. Decimus is three centuries old, and I myself am 413 terran years specifically," Kallius answered.

The officer and many of the guardsmen eavesdroppers nearby all gawked at their ages.

"So it's true then...space marines are immortal?" the man asked with amazement.

Kallius shook his head, "In theory yes, but the average space marine will die in battle after several centuries. My chapter master is over a thousand years old however. Some in the Imperium are also said to be thousands of years old in dreadnoughts. Although that isn't very common as older space marines are typically trusted with more suicidal mission."

"So then the rest of you guys are young for space marines?" the man asked fascinated.

"When one becomes a space marine, things like age don't matter anymore. We're all going to die for the Emperor eventually. It's only a number to us. One used to determine our years of service to our chapters. An Astartes is typically considered a veteran when he's reached 200 years of service," Kallius answered.

"So you're 413? You only look like you're in your early thirties. You must be distinguished," the officer said to Kallius. It was clear that he liked the Blood Angel the most out of all of them.

Kallius simply nodded, "Yes, I was part of the First Company in the Blood Angels."

"That's remarkable. You must be able to do and experience so much with all the time you have to live. I'd love to have a longer life like that without having to get juvenat treatments," the officer said with amazement.

"It's not like we're Terran Nobles living decadently for centuries with their juvenat treatments and all the money and time in the galaxy to waste. We fight all the time! Only the strong willed can endure that kind of eternal duty. Constant warfare, eternal vigilance, and eventually death in the name of the emperor. That is the life of an Adeptus Astartes. Don't you dare assume that we're living like those pompous, bored nobles from whatever world you're from!" Gregorius said somewhat annoyed.

The officer flinched at the Black Templar's words.

"Gregorius here is actually quite young for a Deathwatch marine...it's pretty uncommon seeing anyone under 200 getting picked as most don't distinguish themselves enough within their chapters before becoming veterans. He's quite the melee specialist though. Forgive his aggression. Long decades of constant warfare makes people act differently," Kallius said off topic hoping to calm down Gregorius. The Black Templar's nasty mood eased up slightly as he simply looked away.

"So Deathwatch is a type of space marine chapter?" the officer asked as he tried his best to avoid Gregorius' gaze.

"It's a specialized militant group of the Inquisition that falls under the Ordo Xenos. It employs uniquely talented space marines. Every member is individually chosen from chapters all across the Imperium. It's a special duty in which one serves in the Inquisition's mission to purge the xenos, the heretics, and anything else regular guardsmen, stormtroopers, or space marines can't handle. We are specifically what's called a Kill Team," Kallius explained.

"So you guys are like spec ops space marines? That's incredible!" The lieutenant said with awe.

"That's one way of putting it I guess..." Nemias said with a shrug.

A much larger gathering of people seemed to be slowly getting closer. Seiras looked up and saw the female guardsman from earlier and her friends whispering to one another. The woman pushed her friend to try and talk to the Astartes for her this time.

The fact that they were talking to the officer made the guardsmen and shipmen less terrified to try talking to the Astartes again. The female guardsman from earlier finally convinced her friend to approach Seiras.

"So, I have a question," the female guardsman's friend interjected as she approached the Blood Raven confidently.

Everyone stopped and looked at her for interrupting them and then stared at Seiras awaiting his response. Seiras knew what she was going to ask as so many females were always curious about it.

"I'm sure you do..." Seiras said distantly as he mentally prepared himself for the question that regular people loved to ask. The original woman that spoke to him sat at her table watching anxiously and avoiding his gaze.

"So do space marines have children and familes?" the guardsman managed to ask properly unlike her stuttering friend from earlier.

Seiras let out a long exaggerated sigh as he looked at her, "Why do you even want to know that?"

"Well...just curious is all. It's not an offensive question is it?" she blushed and looked away with embarrassment.

Half the room seemed to be focusing on Seiras for an answer to that question. Half of the guardsmen there were amazed that the woman even had the gall to ask him something so personal.

"This is a question that Viggo or Nemias should answer. I'm done explaining this to every curious guardsman or civilian we talk to," Seiras said looking at his space wolf brother.

Viggo cleared his throat and spoke with a hearty amusement, "To answer your question, guardsman, we usually don't have children. The only time you'll see a space marine with a child is if they have one before they become a space marine...but it's not that common for adults to become space marines as the mortality rate is nearly always fatal. Since I'm a Fenrisian, it's a bit more common on my planet. I myself have some descendants. I believe Nemias here is a great great grandfather as well. It is most common among Salamanders I believe."

She seemed a bit frightened by the space wolf's feral appearance.

"So then most of you don't have families or wives?" she asked slowly as she looked at Kallius and Seiras.

"Not really...the only family most space marines have is our battle-brothers. Initiates sometimes have families and children, but they almost always outlive them. Brother Viggo here has outlived his family for generations I believe. We don't really have time for anything other than fighting or training, so it's not a common thing to see with older Astartes. I can't speak for every chapter though...some do have familes," Kallius answered as profressionally as he could.

She frowned, "So you guys don't ever..."

' _Here it comes...the sex question. Can I just have one conversation with normal people that doesn't bring up this topic_? _Is that all regular people think about? Thank the emperor and that indoctrination training for shutting down our sex drives. It must be so distracting to constantly think about that. At least the Adepta Sororitas don't ever ask this kind of nonsense_.' Seiras thought annoyed.

"No we don't...we're bred for war, not love and reproduction. Such distractions lead one to impurity and weakness. We do not experience intimacy for it is easily exploitable. The Emperor created us to be the perfect warriors...and a perfect warrior needs no woman or children to cloud his mind or distract him. We live for the emperor and for the glory of our primarchs. We find true love in our duty to mankind. That's something you would never understand little girl," Gregorius answered before she could finish her question. For once, Seiras was thankful that the Black Templar interrupted to explain.

She seemed a bit put off by Gregorius' rude and dismissive attitude, but nodded fearfully, "I understand...thanks."

As a librarian, Seiras could read people's minds if he wanted to and decided to try and probe hers out of curiosity. He didn't like to do it often as most of the time people could tell, but he was curious to know what she was thinking. He stealthily and lightly focused on her surface thoughts.

 _"I never knew space marines were a bunch of asshole virgins. It's a crime to be that attractive and have no regard to women at all. How do they live for hundreds of years without having sex? I'd die if I went one year without it. They're so big...I wonder what it'd be like if I-"_ she thought as she stared at Seiras, Kallius, and Gregorius.

The man immediately stopped reading her mind as it went lewd really quickly. She was wondering about their biology, and that's all Seiras needed to hear before blocking out her thoughts. He never understood why some females were so fascinated by space marines. Astartes were literally giants compared to normal humans.

Seiras was not very knowledgable on how courtship or sexual attraction worked in human society as he had been trained to be a space marine since he was a young teenager. What he did know however, is that regular humans weren't very sexually dimorphic in size. Males were obviously stronger and larger, but not by a crazy margin. Space Marines were too different from normal male humans for a female to find attractive biologicially...at least that's what he thought.

Maybe it was some kind of reverence for them being Angels of the Emperor? He did not really understand how or why this woman and others before her found him appealing in such a way. Seiras wasn't even used to associating beauty with the way a person looked. To him beauty was a shrine world, a finely crafted weapon, or the honour guard armour that his chapter's first company got to wear. It was most certainly not something he associated with his battle brothers, with females, or even with his own appearance. Nobody's appearance really mattered to him at all.

' _It must be primal and instinctual now that I think about it. In times of peace females are more attracted to androgynous mates that are similar to them...but it times of war and danger they find stronger, tougher, and larger mates more appealing because it satisifes some base animal need to feel protected. Maybe that's why they think I'm appealing? Is it some kind of feeling of protection or dominance i give them? Am I really as attractive as the others say I am? Whatever...No point in dwelling on something that doesn't matter at all. I'm thankful I don't have to experience lust or desire in such a way_ ,' Seiras concluded mentally.

"I'm done with this...I'll see you all back in our quarters," Gregorius said standing up and walking away to drop off his food tray to several cleaning servitors. The towering Astartes frightened the nearby guardsmen and shipmen as he pushed one aside that was in his way.

It wasn't an overly strong push, but the guardsman still went flying back nearly falling to the ground from the slight push. Seiras read the guardsman's mind as Gregorius didn't bother apologizing, " _Space marines are fucking strong...why'd that asshole push me so hard?_ "

Gregorius left the Mess Hall leaving the other six space marines to awkwardly sit in silence for a moment.

The officer sitting at the table with them spoke up nervously, "I apologize for bothering you guys so much. I did not mean for anyone to offend your friend. It's just a rare opportunity to actually see a space marine, let alone talk to one."

"Your questions were fine...it was her question that was childish and stupid," Kallius said calmly to the officer as the female guardsman returned to her table.

"Don't worry about it, Lieutenant...this isn't new to us. For some reason we attract a crowd everywhere we go. I have no idea why," Seiras said casually as he finally finished his food.

The sound of heavy thuds caught everyone's attention as a dozen or so individuals stomped into the mess hall. They were clad in black power armour and a lot of them had cropped white, blonde, or black hair.

"Adepta Sororitas..." Seiras said shaking his head.

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Alright readers, so I know some of you might be getting bored with these LONG, expositional intro chapters, but I figured it was the best way to introduce the characters and their personalities before things start to ramp up. Have no doubt or fears...there will be plenty of grimdark action coming soon. Khorne would not approve of a story that lacked fighting and violence. I kept as much of their descriptions as I could in the dialogue, so you could get information about their appearances and their history without me having to spam you with flashbacks. They might be a bit OOC as far as space marines go, but this is a fanfiction and I don't really care. The whole reason most people read fanfiction is because the fluff isn't wholly satisfying. Go read the actual novels if this isn't your thing. That being said I'll try to keep things as canonically accurate as possible for you loremasters. As Grandfather Nurgle would say...enjoy this gift.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: A Heretical Conspiracy**

 _ **Avenger of Terra,**_ **Mess Hall**

The Guardsmen in the room all tensed up fearfully at the arrival of the Adepta Sororitas who were known for being terrifying and merciless killers. They also had far less restraint than Space Marines and were easy to offend.

The poor unfortunate workers puckered fearfully as several of the sisters walked over and started requesting various things. Though they weren't rude, the women were definitely blunt in their requests.

A nearby guardsman whistled as several more headed for the line. Not even a second passed before a bolter was pointed at the side of his head, "Who are you whistling at, guardsman?"

The soldier gulped as he turned to look at the white haired, armour-clad sister of battle. The sister noticed the man next to him staring as well and pointed her second bolter at him, "Mind your business...and don't stare, it's rude."

Every male guardsman in the room immediately reconsidered staring at them as they all looked away. It was only then that the Sororitas realized the Deathwatch Astartes were in the mess hall. The one with the bolters looked over at the table incredulously before turning to one of her sisters, "Is that the group we were assigned with? Kill Team Calamity? What are those Deathwatch Astartes doing in here?"

The leader of the group snapped her head towards the space marines and immediately started walking towards them. Seiras had long since looked away, but he could hear her heavy, imposing footsteps growing closer.

He looked over as she got closer and saw the Sororitas' leader and her entourage heading towards them. The leader of the sisters had longer white hair than most of the others with black tips on them. She had blackish red lipstick, ice blue eyes, and two claw scars on her left cheek. The woman had a dark and brooding disposition about her, and radiated intense stoicism. Although the space marines weren't the best judge on what defines one as attractive, Seiras thought she was one of the stronger and better looking women he had seen in his lifetime. She stood taller than all of her sisters by a noticeable margin and had a power sword could be seen at her side as well as a flamer and a bolter. She was undoubtedly the leader of the bunch as the rest of the sisters either had flamers or multiple bolters. One sister had a chainsword however.

The leader of the Sororitas gave them a disapproving look much to their confusion and shook her head upon reaching them, "What are you space marines doing in here?"

Seiras, not being one to let someone talk down to him, immediately stood up and approached the pack of fanatical women. He looked down at their leader calmly, "We were eating. Is there something you need, sister?"

The sister narrowed her gaze when she saw his psychic hood and blood raven shoulder plate, "Blood Raven huh? A librarian too? I'm amazed your traitor chapter is even allowed into Deathwatch. So you guys are Kill Team Calamity I take it?"

The librarian immediately disliked her for the comment about his chapter and narrowed his gaze, "Do you have a problem with us being here, sister?"

"No...I just thought I'd see you for myself. I am your direct superior next to Captain Arius for this mission you've been assigned to," she replied.

' _Gregorius was right...we're under the Ecclesiarchy's authority here,'_ Seiras thought briefly.

The leader of the Sororitas crossed her arms, "I understand you're all highly experienced at killing other space marines. Although with a Blood Raven, a Space Wolf, and a Minotaur that's hardly surprising. Those chapters are infamous for that kind of thing. Is that a Blackshield I see as well? You're just full of Astartes killers aren't you? Now I see why the Ordo Malleus picked your team for this mission."

Decimus didn't seem as offended as Seiras, but he still gave the woman a harsh stare, "Do you have anything relevant to say to us?"

"Just noting facts here, Minotaur. Luckily your chapter is trusted by the Ecclesiarchy. Although I don't know how i feel about this Blackshield here..." the Sororitas leader said as she looked at Nogemo.

Nogemo seemed unfazed by the woman as he walked over to Seiras' side and spoke calmly, "Why is that?"

"I don't like traitors...and the only Astartes who become blackshields are ex traitors. What chapter are you from? What's your name?" she half demanded.

"Nogemo...I'm from Deathwatch," he replied in a smart ass way.

She glared at him, "Very funny...I'll be watching you, traitor. Which one of you is the leader?"

"I am, sister. I'm Watch Sergeant Kallius," the Blood Angel Watch Sergeant introduced himself as he walked over to Seiras' other side.

"Huh...a Blood Angel too. You guys are just full of unstable chapters. I'm in charge of the Commandery on this mission. I'm Cannoness Commander Jessenta Silvina of the Order of the Valorous Heart. I hope you don't have a problem following my commands, brothers," she introduced herself reaching out to shake Kallius' hand.

"Why do we have to answer to you?" Nogemo couldn't help but ask.

"Is that going to be a problem, Blackshield?" she hissed after letting go of Kallius' hand.

The bald Blackshield shrugged, "Well no, but I just find it odd that we would be under the command of Sororitas. If that's the case our chain of command goes from the Inquisitor to Captain Arius and then you? Interesting..."

"That's strike two, Blackshield...give me one more reason to kill you," Jessenta said threateningly.

Nogemo sighed at her and chose not to reply. The towering Space Marine briefly made eye contact with Seiras and gave the libarian an amused look as if to imply that she would have no chance of ever killing him.

"Relax, Commander Silvina. We're simply here to do a job. It doesn't matter to me or any of us who's in charge. We're all a part of the same holy mission," Kallius replied easing the tension.

She nodded approvingly at the Sergeant's compliance, "Good...who are the rest of you then? I would like your names."

"This is brother Viggo of the Space Wolves, brother Decimus of the Minotaurs, brother Nemias of the Salamanders, and Brother Seiras of the Blood Ravens. Our Black Templar brother that left is Gregorius," Kallius introduced the rest of them.

Jessenta looked at Viggo for a moment, "I hope you're good at following orders, wolf man. The last Space Wolf I worked with was a rowdy moron who never shut up."

"As long as it involves fighting then I can," the Space Wolf laughed.

"No drinking either...I will not tolerate drunk buffoons," she continued.

"Aye...whatever you say," Viggo responded casually.

She rolled her eyes and looked at Seiras afterward, "As for you, Blood Raven, I know all about how your chapter pillages anything it can get its hands on. if I so much as hear about you _finding gifts_ while you're under my command then we are going to have a problem."

Viggo burst into laughter upon hearing her threat, "Ahahaha, Seiras, don't go looting stuff you bloody magpie."

Nemias and Nogemo snickered a bit as well. Kallius and Decimus had straight faces and seemed a bit confused about the Sororita's hostility towards Seiras.

The man gave her a serious look, "You seem like you already have a problem with me."

"Rightfully so. Other than being thieves, your chapter is also known to us for killing sisters in the Order of the Sacred Rose. I would not be surprised if you were among those present that did so," Jessenta said venomously.

Seiras gave her a harsh look, "If you know that, then you should probably be more wary about insulting the Blood Ravens to my face."

"If you keep up with that stand off attitude, we're going to have a serious problem," she said fiercely.

"Are we? What are you going to do to me?" Seiras responded.

"I've killed Astartes before, brother Seiras..." Jessenta said darkly as she reached for the hilt of her power sword.

Seiras gave her an intense glare, "Just try it."

Upon uttering those words, nearly all of the Sororitas reached for their weapons and stared him down seriously. Viggo and Decimus jumped up as well leaving Nemias sitting at the table with a wide eye. Decimus had a blood crazed look on his face and terrified a few of the sisters as the colossal terminator growled at them.

"Brothers, calm down...there's no need for this," Kallius tried to be the voice of reason.

"What are they talking about? I can't hear them? Are they going to fight?" someone asked randomly from further away. The room seemed riled up in anticipation watching Astartes and Sororitas interract.

Seiras wanted so much to put this condescending woman in her place, but against his bitter sense of pride he took the high road and simply sighed, "Your hostility is unnecessary, commander. I will not be a problem for you."

The woman seemed to relax considerably at Seiras' restraint causing all of the Astartes and Sororitas to calm down. Jessenta gave Seiras a blank look, "So long as we're clear on that. I do not take pleasure in killing Astartes if I don't have to."

The room's inhabitants looked simultaneously surprised and disappointed that Seiras didn't retaliate. Decimus looked at Seiras curiously but said nothing. Viggo seemed lighthearted about the entire situation while the others looked thankful that Seiras calmed down.

A nearby guardsman shook his head at his buddies, "Doesn't look like they're going to fight after all. I guess even Astartes don't wanna fuck with a wild pack of bolter bitches."

The Sororitas' leader drew her bolter and fired over the man's head causing him to nearly piss himself, "What did you say, guardsman?! Do have something you want to say to my face?!"

"N-no ma'am!" he replied fearfully. Everyone in the mess hall turned to watch as Jessenta walked over to the man's table nearby.

"I think you called me a bolter bitch? Do you know what happened to the last person that called me that?! I shoved my bolter in his mouth like this, and I blew off his damn head." She threatened as she placed the barrel of her bolter into the man's mouth while holding back his head.

The man was terrified now as Jessenta looked at him sadistically, "If that sounds too gruesome for you, I can always burn you alive with my flamer. For all I know, you're probably a heretic."

"No ma'am, I'm not!" The man tried to speak despite the bolter's barrel being in his mouth.

"You're not? So then you just thought you were a comedian? Tell me guardsmen, how funny are you now?" the woman asked darkly as she dug her gauntlet into his head pulling his neck back even further.

"I'm sorry! Please forgive me!" he shouted.

"Because I think you're really funny now! C'mon everyone laugh for our commedian here! HAHAHA. Isn't he so funny?!" Jessenta forced aggressive laughter.

"Commissar on deck!" a random guardsman shouted at the top of his lungs causing the entire room to jump to their feet at attention. The only person that didn't was the guardsman with a bolter in his mouth. Jessenta let him go shortly afterward. The sisters and marines all looked towards the entrance of the mess hall where the fleet commissar was now standing. He looked beyond angry as he made his way towards them.

Having a closer look at him, Seiras noticed he was definitely seasoned judging by his greying hair, many scars, and large assortment of medals. The Commissar walked fearlessly towards them and spoke angrily, "What in the name of the Emperor is going on in here?! I've got reports of rabble in my mess hall and I arrive to see Astartes and Sororitas in here with power armour on trying to intimidate my men?! And is that a bolter shot I heard?! Are you kidding me?!"

The guardsmen and shipmen present seemed thankful that they were not at the recieving end of the commissar's wrath for once. Others seemed impressed that he had the balls to yell at Space Marines and Sisters of Battle at the same time and by himself.

"With all due respect Commissar, I think you should calm down," Jessenta replied threateningly. The people in the mess hall were all watching with anticipation as if this was the most entertaining thing they had seen in ages.

"All permanent ship crew and guardsmen clear out immediately! Sororitas and Astartes remain!" The commissar roared.

Without hesitation, everyone in the room got up and dispersed as quickly as possible. It was clear that they were terrified of this Commissar. Seiras looked down at the seasoned, battle hardened Commissar annoyed. The Commissar was larger than most people and was about two meters tall if Seiras had to guess. Despite the man's size, he still only came up to Seiras' chest. The commissar was a bit taller than Jessenta, who was about 192 centimeters in her power armour. She was probably the tallest woman Seiras had ever seen.

Viggo, Decimus, and Nogemo were all larger than Seiras and dwarfed the Commissar as they all stood by the librarian's side. Nemias and Kallius walked towards the sides of the group looking at the Commissar calmly. They were about the same height and slightly shorter than the librarian.

The Commissar maintained his bearing as the towering superhumans gathered, and showed no fear as he spoke, "What do you all think you're doing fraternizing with my men and women in the mess hall? You were given special accomodations at the Inquisitor's order. I assumed Deathwatch Space Marines would have had more decency than to come in here and stir up trouble. And Sisters...you are NOT allowed to carry loaded bolters in here! You are especially not allowed to put them in my men's mouths!"

' _Because that's only alright when you do it right?'_ Seiras thought to himself.

Viggo couldn't help but laugh at how angry the commissar was getting which only served to set him off.

"Something funny, space wolf?! You must be the joker of the group! Am I right?" the commissar said angrily.

Viggo was about to say something, but stopped when Kallius put a hand on his shoulder.

"What do you think you were doing bringing loaded weapons and power armour into the mess hall?! That might be okay in your own militant branches, but it is unacceptable to assault my men and point loaded weapons at the crew of my ship without good cause! If I had any authority over this matter, I'd have you all punished for this ridiculous lack of discipline!" The Commissar ranted.

"We apologize for the drama, Commissar," Nemias tried to calm the man down. Viggo looked like he was trying his hardest not to laugh again. Seiras, Decimus, Nogemo, and Kallius all had straight faces. It was good that Gregorius wasn't there, because Seiras could only imagine how confrontational he would have been.

"We were merely in a hurry to eat, Lord Commissar and forgot to leave them in our quarters," one of the higher ranking sisters explained.

"Did you also forget that you have a chainsword strapped to your leg too?" the man asked increduloulsy.

The Sororitas all said nothing as they all simply stared at the commissar waiting for him to finish his rant.

"We didn't stir up any trouble sir...I just wanted an actual meal, and your men wanted to ask us questions. Cannoness Commander Jessenta Silvina here simply came to introduce herself to us and everything else is a misunderstanding," Seiras explained.

"I do not care if you're Space Marines...I do not care if you're Sisters of Battle...I could care less if you were all commissars! There are rules aboard this ship that even your holier-than-thou asses will all abide by! Do I make myself clear?" the Commissar said authoritatively.

"I think you've stepped outside your mind, Commissar...we don't answer to you or this chain of command. We answer to the Inquisitor only here," Seiras said fiercely.

"Yes do you..." a voice sounded from nearby.

Before any of them could say another word, Inquisitor Atia walked into the room with an unhappy face. She had apparently been standing in the doorway watching them for the past minute or so, "I heard you all were wandering around the ship...but mingling with the crew? Whose idea was this?"

"It was mine," Seiras immediately took responsibility for it. Jessenta gave him a curious look for owning up to the responsibility immediately.

"I recommended us eating with the crew since we were low on nutrient paste," Nemias added.

"Mingling? What does that mean?" Decimus repeated the word confused.

"I think it means spending time with or talking to. It's just some fancy word for socializing," Kallius explained to the Minotaur Terminator.

She looked at them confused, "Can't space marines go weeks without eating? Why would that be a valid reason to come here?"

"We were bored and I wanted an actual meal. It wasn't a matter of necessity," Seiras responded.

Atia gave the man a perplexed look, "You're telling me you were bored? Are you kidding me, Seiras?! Since when do space marines get bored?"

"When we're assigned to an empty hanger with no supplies and equipment," Seiras replied.

Kallius shook his head, "This was my responsibility inquisitor. I did not intend for us to cause a problem."

"Have you all forgotten why you're here?!" Atia demanded.

"No..." Seiras replied bluntly.

"Obviously you have...and you Commander...what are you doing pointing weapons at people on this flagship? Are you trying to show off to my Deathwatch Marines?" the Inquisitor asked Jessenta.

"Well some guardsman called me a bolter bitch. I can't just let someone get away with calling me bolter bitch," Jessenta shrugged.

Atia gave her a hard glare, "You are a bolter bitch...for bringing a loaded bolter in here and threatening people with it like a crazy bitch. Get out of here...return to your quarters, Commander Bolter Bitch."

' _Did the Inquisitor really just stoop to that level of immaturity? I've never seen Atia act like that.'_ Seiras thought surprised.

"As you say, Inquisitor," the cannoness commander nodded before leaving with her sisters. Seiras noticed the Sororita give the Inquisitor a nasty glare and a middle finger after walking behind her and the commissar. The whole thing was very strange for him to witness.

"The Imperial Fists and White Templars are arriving within the next day. When they do we will depart for the warp. The trip is estimated to take about two to three weeks. You are all to return to your quarters immediately as well. I will send for you if you're needed. The rest of you may go...but Seiras wait outside for me," She said gesturing for them all to leave.

"Surely you intend to do something about this behavior of theirs?" the Commissar asked as they all left one by one.

Atia looked at him and shook her head, "It's not a big deal...but I'll make sure they don't do it again. We don't need rumors spreading throughout the fleet."

"I'll be on my way, Inquisitor," the Commissar said displeased. Atia left the mess hall shortly afterward and saw Seiras leaning against the wall nearby. The Commissar passed by and continued walking as the two stared each other down.

One of the grey knights was also standing outside and looked between Atia and Seiras quietly.

Atia frowned at Seiras' callous expression, "You might not be the Watch Sergeant, but your team follows you a lot more than you think, Seiras. It's why you're second in command for your team. Even Sergeant Kallius defers to you more often than not. That's not common for a marine of his reputation to do with someone half his age. He's a first company blood angel that thinks highly of you. According to the Ordo Xenos, he specifically requested you to be on his team in Deathwatch."

Seiras said nothing as he gave Atia a blank stare.

"You're also a psyker and you've convinced a Minotaur, a Space Wolf, and a Black Templar to work with you...it speaks volumes about the amount of influence you hold over them. They respect you and all of the terrible campaigns you've endured. That is why you should set a better example for them as the team's librarian."

"We were just getting food and passing the time until servitors arrived. I didn't even try to talk to the crew...they just kept coming over to us," Seiras said with a sigh.

"If you really wanted food the servitors would have brought you some eventually. What's the real reason why you dragged your team into this situation? I doubt it was boredom. Did you just want to piss me off?" she asked.

"You're seriously making a big deal out of this, Inquisitor?" he asked almost disbelievingly.

"It's not about you going to the mess hall...it's about why you did it. You always go off and do whatever you want on a whim. I swear, sometimes it feels like you're not even a space marine. Your rebellious behavior infects your entire Kill Team and invites chaotic rabble wherever you go. I didn't think I had to concern myself with a Deathwatch Kill Team being as undisciplined and embarrassing as yours. This is something I expect from penal guard legions or common guardsmen...not the emperor's angels of death. Not from Deathwatch. The Ordo Xenos told me your team was one of their finest...experienced in slaying aliens, daemons, and Astartes alike. So far you're a disgrace to the Ordo Malleus and my task force," she said condemningly.

"Forgive me madame inquisitor, but I don't like being confined to a room like a weapon being put into an armoury. Why do we have to sit in some half ass quarters on an Imperial Navy ship? Couldn't you use your great and mighty Inquisitorial authority to get us a strike cruiser or something more practical? We could have just stayed on the cruiser we came in on. If that's out of the question, we will gladly go with the Imperial Fists ships when they arrive," he replied bluntly.

"That is not happening! You're staying with me on this ship! You will remain here on this ship because my Stormtroopers and those bolter bitches are going with your team in Shark Assault Boats. You Blood Ravens have a real problem with authority. It's no wonder there was a civil war in your chapter. This is the last time I will tolerate your disobedience. If I tell you to lick my boots, guard a latrine, or sit in a hanger then I expect you to do so without question, Seiras! It's not your place to decide what's right or wrong here. It's not your place to make demands of me either! I don't care if you're a space marine...I wouldn't care if you were a chapter master. You answer to me and the Inquisition! Period! Is that understood?!" Atia said angrily.

"Perfectly, Inquisitor..." he nodded calmly.

"You are a weapon first and foremost, Space Marine. The Emperor created you to be used for the Imperium of Man's endless wars. He created you to die for mankind. I don't care what you want or feel...didn't they get rid of all those emotions and free thoughts during your indoctrination? What's so bad about your accomodations anyway?" she said venomously.

"It's an insult to us...you treat the grey knights like they're Terran Lords, but the rest of us are simply shoved into an unused hanger? Why would you even pull in the Ordo Xenos for help if you have the amazing Grey Knights," he complained as he looked at the nearby Grey Knight.

The Grey Knight there was undoubtedly Captain Arius judging by how prestigious his terminator armour looked and the Nemesis Force halberd in his hand. His reaction was impossible to discern as he was wearing a helmet.

"Nothing is ever enough for you is it? You are far too entitled, impatient, and disrespectful for my liking. If it wasn't for you being a seasoned librarian with a notable record from the Ordo Xenos , I would have never accepted an Astartes like you into my task force. You would do well to remember your place, Blood Raven. Question me again and I'll send your head and geneseed back to your chapter command with a letter detailing your inability to follow orders. It's a wonder you even made it into Deathwatch. You're a failure as far as I'm concerned. Maybe you'll earn your honour back by dying for the emperor in this upcoming battle," she hissed.

"Will that be all, Inquisitor?" he asked callously.

"Think about what I told you," Atia said as she turned to leave. Arius followed behind her, but not before a lingering glance at Seiras who walked the opposite direction.

Upon walking around a corner hallway, the librarian saw a familiar face. It was the first female guardsman that talked to him from earlier. She had apparently eavesdropped on the entire conversation between him and the Inquisitor.

' _How did I not sense her over here? I would have heard her wouldn't I? My senses must be dull right now because of how annoyed I am.'_ Seiras thought concerned.

The female guardsman seemed startled when Seiras looked at her and nervously looked down not finding the words to justify her actions. Seiras lightly and stealthily read her mind's surface thoughts to find out what she was thinking.

" _That Inquisitor is a total bitch. I should say something to Seiras while we're here alone. This is my only chance. Emperor grant me strength_." The guardsman thought as she looked at Seiras briefly making eye contact.

"Umm...I," she tried to think of something to say, but was interrupted.

"Sorry about earlier guardsman. I'm just in a bad mood today," Seiras cut her off as he started to walk away.

He made it several steps before she called out to him, "W-wait! Umm...Seiras was your name right?"

The Blood Raven stopped in his tracks and turned around to face her, "Yes it is..."

' _She knew I was a Blood Raven before anyone mentioned it in the mess hall. I wonder if that's why she wanted to talk to me?'_ Seiras thought.

"You don't have to go back to that hanger yet if you don't want to. I mean I could-" she seemed like she was trying to come up with a reason for him to not go away yet.

"Show me the weather around here?" he asked.

A slight blush crept up on her face as she rubbed the back of her head shyly, "Uhh...yeah that was pretty dumb of me to say earlier. Listen umm...I'm sorry for being all weird and bothersome before. And I'm really sorry about what my friend said! She didn't mean to be so crude about it."

"It's alright...it wasn't the first time I've been asked about it and it most certainly won't be the last," Seiras replied.

She seemed relieved that Seiras wasn't mad at her and eased up slightly, "I really wanted to talk to you and it was embarrassing with everyone else watching. I'm not good with people staring."

"How do you think I feel? I get stared at all the time" he said. She seemed to think about his question after he asked it.

"Well...it's hard not to stare at you," she said shyly.

Seiras made sure to block out reading her thoughts as he looked at her uncertainly. He took this time to actually take in her appearance. She had medium light brown hair that was shorter than his, freckles, and green eyes. From his best guess she was around 175 to 180 cm in height. She was wearing a more casual military tank top without her chest armour and helmet, but was still wearing the lower half of her uniform. It must have been an undershirt that went with the uniform as it matched her attire.

The woman had an Imperial Aquila tattooed to her left shoulder and what looked like a raven on the other one. He stared at it for a moment curiously, ' _A Raven Tattoo?'_

It was different than that the Blood Raven sigil, but was still quite similar. The female guardsman had a muscular feminine frame, but wasn't as buff as some he had seen. Seiras could tell she was getting embarrassed as he examined her.

"I'm from Meridian..." she finally said after a long silence, "I recognized the Blood Raven symbol on your shoulder plate. We've met before."

Seiras gave her a confused look, "When was that?"

"About twenty years ago. I was only a little girl at the time, but I would recognize those eyes and that face from anywhere. You haven't aged a day," She said as she finally got the courage to maintain eye contact.

The space marine gave her a confused look and said nothing as she nervously fiddled with a lock of her hair.

"You saved my district from a Tyrannid attack. That's why I was so...awkward when I saw it was you again. The Emperor gave me this chance to properly thank you for what you did. I was only a child then, so I couldn't really express proper gratitude," the guardsman said shyly.

The Blood Raven looked at her more closely, "I must have saved you personally if you could recognize my face...wait, I remember what you're talking about now. I did save a child from a Hive Warrior there...are you saying that was you?"

"Y-yeah..." she said distantly.

"Time flies..." Seiras said distantly.

" _Twenty years and I finally see him again...the Emperor has truly granted my wish. What are the odds I would encounter him here of all places? This is divine providence...there is no other explanation. Maybe this is a sign that I should return to my faith in the Emperor_ ," Seiras heard her think as he briefly read her mind.

' _Return to her faith in the Emperor? Why would she not be faithful already?'_ Seiras wondered after hearing her thoughts.

"You joined the Imperial Guard I see? Why?" Seiras asked after a brief silence.

She frowned, "Well, girls can't become Astartes...I remember you telling me that when I begged to stay with you. But I still wanted to fight alongside the Emperor's angels. To protect mankind is a great calling. Especially with evils like the Tyrannids out there...I wanted to do my part, even if it was only small in comparison to yours."

"I see..." Seiras replied as he recalled his experience with the young girl from all those years ago with perfect clarity. Blood Ravens were known for having perfect memories due to a mutation in their Catalepsean node, but it hindered their ability to completely enter R.E.M. sleep unfortunately. Seiras remembered specific details about how he showed up just in time to kill a Tyrannid Hive Warrior as it was devouring a family of people in the lower districts of Meridian. The only survivor was a young girl who could not have been older than eight. She had brown hair, green eyes, and freckles. Seiras remembered how physically pathetic she was when she cried at his blood covered feet. The Blood Raven took pity on her and got her out of the Tyrannid warzone. He was drawn from his memories as she spoke again.

"You're exactly like I remember you...I'm glad I got to see you again. It's things like this that make me truly believe that the Emperor looks out for us. It's easy to lose faith when everything that can go wrong does...but seeing one shining light means so much to us regular people. Seeing you...my guardian angel again means a lot to me." she said softly as she smiled at the man.

Seiras wasn't really sure how to react to her somewhat emotional state. It was clear that she felt more comfortable around him now as she came closer and looked up with twinkling eyes. A single tear fell down her face as she smiled.

 _'She's crying? Why is she smiling and crying?'_ Seiras wondered completely lost. He was not familiar with whatever emotion she was experiencing right now.

"I'm glad your faith did not betray you then. The Emperor truly does look out for us all," Seiras said nodding with understanding. Much to his confusion, she reached up and wrapped her arms around his waist.

' _What is she doing? Holding onto me? I should go before this gets any stranger_ ,' Seiras thought. During his brainstorming, he was completely aloof to her emotions and the hug.

"May the Emperor Protect you, Lord Seiras..." the guardsman said with a smile as she let go.

"The Emperor Protects," Seiras replied with a nod as he began to walk away.

 _"I wonder if I should tell him my name? Will I ever see him again? What should I do? Is it weird if I tell him? Does he even care? My name doesn't matter to him...he didn't react at all to my feelings. I should have known I was too far gone for a him to help me."_ she thought to herself as Seiras departed. He overheard her pitiful thoughts as he left and stopped in his tracks.

 _'I wasn't even trying to read her mind that time, but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to know who this weird girl is. I wonder what she meant by too far gone? She's guilty about something_ ,' Seiras thought.

"What was your name, guardsman? I should probably remember it if I see you again," he asked. In truth he figured that he would probably never see her again, but it made the woman feel better and for some reason he felt like it was worth knowing.

"Daniella Vara...all my friends just call me Danny," she said.

"Stay faithful, Danny," he said as he finally left. He tried to probe her mind as he was leaving in case he could pick up her intentions, but much to his confusion he couldn't.

' _That's strange...I can't read her mind anymore. It's like she was filtering her thoughts. Very unusual...If I push harder, she'll know i'm reading her mind. I guess that's the end of that then'_ Seiras thought as he continued back to the hanger.

As he walked by himself back to the hanger for the better part of half an hour, he eventually saw the Adepta Sororitas leader Jessenta leaning against the bulkhead in front of him.

"I figured you would take this path," the Sororita said.

"What is it, commander? Is there something you need?" Seiras asked curiously. He was still displeased about her attitude from earlier and was doing little to hide his disapproval in seeing her.

The woman ignored his expression and nodded, "I have something I want to tell you..."

"What might that be?" the man asked simply.

She looked around to make sure there were no servo skulls, recording devices, or ship crew around before speaking, "I think the Inquisitor is a bitch."

A moment passed before Seiras realized it was actually a joke. He stared at her unsure of what to say until she finally laughed. He had met and even fought Sisters of Battle before, but he never truly understood them as each sister had a very unique personality.

"Is that supposed to be a joke?" Seiras asked confused.

Jessenta chuckled lightly before getting serious, "No, but I what I really wanted to ask is how experienced are you with fighting daemons?"

"Well my former chapter master, Azariah Kyras, became a Daemon Prince...so I would say pretty experienced." Seiras said assuming that was enough to answer her question.

She shook her head in annoyance, "No, I mean like what kinds of daemons have you fought?"

"Bloodletters, a Bloodthirster or two, Unclean Ones, and some others like that," Seiras answered.

Jessenta frowned, "I see...so you don't have experience with Daemonettes?"

"Not really. That's mostly Ordo Malleus territory," Seiras replied.

"They're vile seductresses...you're a psyker so they will be targetting you especially hard during the mission. Do not trust every innocent girl you see..." Jessenta warned.

The man looked at her confused, "What are you talking about?"

"You see these slashes on my cheek? I got these from a daemonette. Daemons of Slaanesh aren't like the chaos forces you've fought up until now. They will not attack you with strength, speed, or wit. They will go after your heart...your desire...your feelings if they can. Some can appear as beautiful, vulnerable, and even sympathetic but it is only an illusion. If you're alone, they'll appear before you like that guardsman girl," Jessenta said softly.

"You saw that earlier?" he asked somewhat surprised. That was twice today someone had elluded his detection skills.

"I saw that and your conversation with Inquisitor Atia...you're a prime target right now for all sorts of people. Come here, Seiras, I have something I need to tell you," Jessenta commanded.

The sororita motioned for Seiras to lean over and got closer to his face. She whispered very quietly, "There are traitors on this ship...the Ecclesiarchy suspected heresy and sent us with you for this mission. That's why we're really here."

Seiras gave her a serious look, "Are you serious? Are you saying that girl is a heretic?"

"Likely...girls like her are always the ones that you shouldn't trust," Jessenta whispered.

"Why haven't you done anything yet?" he asked quietly.

She shook her head, "I don't know how many of them there are, and if I play my hand too soon, they'll all scatter like bugs. Have you...had any strange visions or feelings since coming on this ship?"

"Yes I have...I can't quite explain it, but something about the entire mission feels wrong to me. I can't pinpoint what it is...I assumed it was a brewing warpstorm, but it's almost as if something is blocking or clouding my psychic powers," Seiras replied.

The Sororita sighed, "Something is definitely clouding your senses...because the grey knights and the Inquisitor don't seem to detect anything either and they're trained for this kind of thing."

"Have you thought to bring this up to the Inquisitor?" Seiras asked.

"Not at all...she's is not very subtle and would undoubtedly let too many slip through the cracks if she brought down the hammer. It's the reason why this fleet was never properly cleansed of heresy in the first place. Not to mention, the first person the Inquisitor would suspect of heresy is you...so you can imagine why I'm keeping this from her for the time being," Jessenta explained.

The man cocked his head, "You don't suspect me at all? Didn't you imply my chapter was a traitor chapter?"

"Yes, but I know you are innocent because of one simple thing...you make it obvious that you dislike the Inquisition. A proper infiltrator would pretend to be a devout servant. You're also a librarian that resisted a heretical schism in your chapter...so I highly doubt you would kill your traitor brothers only to betray the Imperium later. Your dislike of the Inquisitor however serves to draw out potential heretics who might want to sway you. Nothing personal," Jessenta explained.

Just then an epiphany hit him. Jessenta was trying to make him a target for heretics. The man shook his head, "Heretics would be delusional to think a Space Marine could ever be swayed so easily."

"They are delusional...which is why we should take advantage of this situation," Jessenta explained.

Seiras thought about what she was saying as the scene with the Daniella girl played over in his head again, _'I couldn't detect that girl earlier, yet her mind was so wide open I practically heard her thoughts with no effort...until they were blocked out. hmm, there's more to this than I thought. She kept expressing some kind of renewed faith in the Emperor as if she had lost faith at some point...she might just be a heretic after all.'_

"So what do you suggest we do?" the man wondered.

"The only thing we can do...we wait for them to reveal themselves. Just be careful, brother...anyone in this fleet who isn't a grey knight, the Inquisitor, my Commandery, or your Kill Team is a potential heretic. Trust nobody...and stay armed," she said softly.

It was only then that Seiras realized why all the Sororitas were carrying weapons around earlier. They didn't feel safe without them given the nature of their secret mission.

"Seiras is that you? I forgot to tell you something," a voice said coming down the hallway and around the corner. Judging by the sound of it, the individual was none other than the Daniella girl from earlier.

"It's that girl...she's following you," Jessenta said quietly.

The two definitely looked suspicious in their current predicament, and would no doubt be suspected of collaborating if found in this postion. So doing the quickest thing she could think of in order to make it look like they weren't up to anything scheme-related, the Sororita pulled Seiras in for a kiss as the woman came around the corner.

She quickly moved her arms to make it look like Seiras had kissed her and pushed the marine back. Jessenta broke the kiss and angrily punched Seiras in the face, "What do you think you're doing, brother?! Control yourself...how dare you kiss me! I didn't even think you liked women!"

Seiras had never kissed anyone before in his life, and he couldn't really describe this unusual experience. He had no idea what was going on for a moment, but quickly figured out it must be some kind of act so he went along with it, "I apologize, Commander Jessenta."

"I know you guys don't get laid, but seriously? You should know better than to cozy up to me like that. I'm your commanding officer for this mission...and I'm a Sororita. I suggest you keep your lustful thoughts to yourself unless you want me to burn you alive! What kind of a space marine are you?!"

"Did you two just...kiss?" Daniella gasped with shock as she looked between the two of them confused. The woman appeared genuinely distraught by the fact that Seiras had actually kissed a sister of battle despite his seeming lack of interest in all things female earlier.

"What are you doing snooping around here, girl? This isn't a show! Where were you going?" Jessenta demanded fiercely.

The female guardsman gulped, "I-I was just walking to sick bay and I thought I heard Seiras."

"Well keep on walking then...I'm having a conversation with Seiras right now about his lack of self-restraint," Jessenta said angrily.

Daniella was quick to shuffle along with haste as the Sororita ranted for about another minute. After making sure the woman was out of range for good, Jessenta stopped.

A brief silence passed as the two stared at each other awkwardly.

"Why did you do that?" Seiras asked confused.

The Sororita commander took a moment to make sure the woman was actually gone before speaking, "Why did I kiss you? Sorry about that, brother. I don't typically condone lustful things like that, but I had to make it look like we were talking for a different reason. That girl is following you around and trying to get closer to you. She's definitely looking to recruit you if I had to guess."

Seiras felt his lip for a moment and looked at her, "So that was a kiss?"

"Yes...was I your first?" she asked curiously.

The man nodded, "You were."

"That's good. Better you had it with someone pure like me than some heretic harlot. I-oh you should probably wipe that off," Jessenta said as she licked her thumb, reached up, and tried to wipe off the dark lipstick she left on him.

"What are you doing?" the man asked as she wiped his lips several times with her thumb.

"You had lipstick on you still..." she said looking away.

Seiras made it a point not to read her thoughts as he felt it would be inappropriate to do to a Sister of Battle.

"That girl is the key to unraveling this conspiracy...so here's what I want you to do. When she comes by to ask you about what happened between us, I want you to tell her that you're unhappy with the Inquisitor and that you thought I would understand how you felt. When she asks why you kissed me, tell her it was because you lost control of your emotions for a moment when I said you were my bitch. If she's a Slaaneshi cultist, which I believe she is, then that kind of thing will turn her on and make her easy to manipulate," Jessenta said quietly.

"Umm...okay," Seiras said uncertainly.

"Tell her you don't feel right about this mission and that you feel like something is going wrong. After expressing your dislike for the Inquisition, she will likely trust you then and make an offer to join the cultists. When she does...find out who is all involved and my Sororitas will root them out. Keep in mind, you might have to do some things that are somewhat heretical...for them to truly trust you," Jessenta explained.

The man gave her a dumbfounded look, "You're actually telling me to commit heresy? This is ridiculous. You were practically accusing me of that earlier and now you want me to commit it willingly? What makes you think this plan of yours is any better than letting the Inquisitor handle it?"

She scowled at him, "I wouldn't dare suggest it if we had a better choice in the matter. It goes against all of my morals and yours...but something has to be done about the traitors on this ship. Considering your history with that woman, you are the best way for us to lure them out."

"How are they a threat though? Do you really expect a few heretics and traitors to sabotage the fleet during a space battle?" Seiras gawked.

Jessenta cracked a fist angrily, "You don't understand...they're not just heretics. They are a Slaaneshi Cult. Considering that we're going after a warband of Slaanesh worshipping space marines, you can imagine why my superiors thought it concerning. They could very well have contacted the enemy about our movements and set up an ambush."

"If that's the case, then it's already too late to do anything about it," Seiras replied.

"Not necessarily. They might have told the enemy we're coming already, but what we really need is to find out what they've lied to us about. I do not trust the intel regarding this enemy fleet. We need to find out who they are, what they know, and why they're on this mission. To do that, you will have to go undercover," The Sister said with a heavy sigh.

Seiras frowned at her, "You're asking me to pretend like I want to join their cult?"

"No...I'm ordering you to do it. I...I am deeply sorry that I have to make you to do this. To stain your purity for the sake of uprooting this heretic conspiracy. Please just endure it...considering your reputation as a loyal Blood Raven, I trust you can. Just know that any sin will be forgiven by the Emperor and by us if you do this for the right reason," Jessenta said the last part sadly.

"Why me? Couldn't a regular spy do this job?" he asked shaking his head.

"This is the only way...and the only thing they would never suspect from you or me. Loyal space marines are not known for being double agents. They would undoubtedly never suspect you of betrayal once you proved your interest in joining them. If you could convince them to trust you, then they would consider you their strongest ally. They would tell you everything we need to know. Not to mention...if all of the psykers are getting clouded visions, it's likely because their ringleader is a powerful Psyker too. Since you're a psyker, you will have protection against them reading your mind. It's the most ideal situation to root them out," Jessenta answered.

Seiras looked at her seriously and nodded, "I will do what I have to if you truly believe this is the only way."

"Brother Seiras...I-I should probably tell you that part of your way in as a double agent will no doubt involve intimacy with that guard girl. I don't know what impure things she will want you to do, but your way into the cult will very likely involve a show of proof that you're one of them. They could make you do anything for all I know," Jessenta frowned.

"How can you be so sure that she's a heretic?" the man asked.

"I know a heretic when I see one. They hide behind the illusion of innocence. They are also drawn to pure things...such as yourself. But for her specifically, I noticed that she has purple eyeliner. That is not a typical color for a guardsman to wear. They are allowed wear black eyeliner in their dress uniforms...her color is out of Imperial Guard regulations and she was wearing it in her combat uniform," the Sororita elaborated in detail.

Seiras felt truly impressed by her high awareness and detective skills. He noticed that detail, but didn't think much of it at the time.

"I suppose you've done your research then. I will trust in it, commander. What do I do if I'm caught by the Inquisitor or the Grey Knights while undercover? Also will your sisters know about this?" Seiras asked.

"My Sororitas will know, but nobody else can. Pray for the Emperor's salvation if Atia or the grey knights find you undercover, for I won't be able to help you and nobody will believe you are innocent. Be careful, brother..." she whispered.

Seiras nodded, "I should go. Where can I find you if I need to talk about this?"

"Only talk to me again once you've found the traitor hive. We only get one chance at this," She said.

"I might just be able to send you a psychic message if it's urgent," Seiras explained.

The woman nodded in approval, "That would work...but it would not be easy for you to do in front of them."

"I have my ways. Be safe, Commander Jessenta...may the Emperor Protect you," Seiras said as he began to leave.

After the two parted ways, Seiras felt a sickening feeling in his stomach, ' _I have to go undercover to find heretics? Emperor protect me...'_

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX** _ **Avenger of Terra**_ **, Hanger 5, Two Days Later, Warpspace XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

It didn't take long for the Imperial Fists and White Templars to arrive and join the Inquisitor's fleet, and for the past two days they had been traveling through the warp. Seiras remained in the hanger for the majority of the time, and had literally no desire to leave because of what he had to do.

He expected it to be a while before the fleet got out of the warp. His battle brothers were all of doing various things to pass the time ranging from training, reading, to even just lounging about and telling stories. Luckily their accomodations in the hanger were better now, but that did little to ease Seiras' concern over the plot of heresy aboard the ship. Inquisitor Atia had calmed down thankfully and was nice enough to give them permission to wander around the ship the following day so long as they didn't do so with weapons.

The rest of his brothers were currently sitting around in their power armour as they did not like warp travel without it. Seiras had his on, and tried to sleep, but being a psyker and a Blood Raven, he never got good sleep. 'I need to go find that girl again,' Seiras thought as he watched Viggo and Nemias debating what the best pastime was.

"I'll be back in a little while brothers. I'm going to walk around the ship for a bit," Seiras told them as he stood up and headed for the exit. They all eyed him curiously, but said nothing as the librarian took his leave.

Seiras left and began to walk down the hallways of the ship for a while. He had no idea how long he had been pacing, but it must have been hours. Many armsmen and voidsmen acknowledged him as he wandered around to various parts of the ship and before long, Seiras discovered what must have been crew quarters. He stopped walking for a moment when he saw a group of people that appeared to be sneaking out of their quarters and moving to an isolated room. He heard strange sounds after a minute and walked over to investigate it.

Much to his displeasure, it was just two crew members having sex. He immediately kept walking as he was not interested in seeing or hearing it. _'That was certainly not something I wanted to see_. _Where am I ever going to find this Daniella woman?_ '

"Seiras is that you?" a familiar and eerily chilling voice sounded from nearby. Seiras already knew who it was and was now one hundred percent convinced that he and the Sororita weren't mistaken about there being something off with this woman. How she managed to find him on this large battleship before he found her, he had no idea.

"Daniella?" he asked as he looked over and noticed the guardsman in off duty attire.

Her face lit up with delight, "You remembered my name!?"

"I did. You are an easy woman to remember," Seiras tried to compliment her. He imagined Viggo laughing at him in his head for saying something like that, but hoped it was good enough.

"Well...I didn't think you would. I told you to call me Danny though," she said with a smile.

"Well, Danny, some people are special even if they don't realize it," Seiras said. It was a quote he was gifted from Nemias.

"You think I'm special?" She beamed with some strange type of ecstasy. It was only then that Seiras could finally sense a chaotic taint within her.

' _What is that? She's got this darkness inside of her. Something is suppressing my ability to detect the source of chaos here, but there is definitely some in her_ ,' Seiras concluded mentally.

"Well you're not like other women I've talked to before," Seiras said. He was lucky that he had already spent about a day sitting around and thinking of ways to get on the good side of the heretics. During that time he asked Viggo and Nemias more about how he should have reacted to women in the past. It was fortunate that they were knowledgable enough to help him understand it and not too curious about his sudden interest. They seemed all too eager to tell him everything they knew on the matter.

"Hmph is that so? What about the Sister of Battle the other day? I was so surprised you kissed her. I thought you two hated each other based on how that standoff in the Mess Hall went. I didn't know you had those kinds of feelings for girls," she said shyly.

"When did I ever say that?" Seiras asked. It was completely true, but he had to make it look like it wasn't.

"Hey let's go sit down. No reason to stand around and talk in a corridor," Daniella blushed with embarrassment as she grabbed his arm and tried to guide him somewhere.

The two walked for a moment before Daniella invited him to sit down in candle lit room nearby. It looked like a common room for off duty crew members to lounge about at. It was eerily similar to the room he walked by earlier with the crew members having sex. Nobody else was in the common room which was hardly surprising. Seiras sat down on the ground against a bulkhead so he didn't break any furniture with his power armour, and Daniella sat right next to him. He was somewhat surprised to see how comfortable she was sitting next to him.

' _Where is the crew right now?'_ Seiras thought confused.

"So...what's going on with you and that Sororita?" Daniella asked after a brief and awkward silence.

Seiras remembered what Jessenta told him to say and mentally prepared himself for what would come after. He took a deep breath and sighed, "Ah that...well it's a strange series of events really. It mostly came from how I was feeling at the time. The Inquisitor doesn't appreciate me and all the things I do. It's put me in a strange mindset lately."

"She's a complete bitch...you're an angel of the emperor. She is just jealous that you're so perfect," the woman said blushing as she clutched onto his arm and leaned into him.

He looked over at her curiously, but chose not to comment on her actions.

"I just feel like after all these years nothing fulfills me like it used to. I've given so much and endured so much pain that I just can't feel anything anymore except this feeling of being trapped and enslaved. I just repress everything and do what I'm told day after day after day. I got so tired of suppressing my emotions and holding back that I just let go for a moment. I was free for the first time in my life," he said with a whisper. What he said was something a fellow librarian had told him before turning to chaos. Seiras felt his insides literally shiver repeating his former brother's words.

' _I wonder how convincing I am? I've never actually deceived someone like this before.'_ Seiras thought to himself. He spent an entire day thinking of ways to do it, and oddly enough it was just coming naturally.

"You...let go? Is that why you kissed the sister?" Daniella replied breathing some strange way as if she was enjoying the thought.

Seiras remembered the phrase Jessenta used to describe how she would react, ' _Did that turn her on? What kind of a person gets sexual arousal from me saying that? She is a heretic...without a doubt.'_

"The sister wanted to chastise me about being disrespectful to her and the Inquisitor. She tried to assert authority over me. She said that she was calling the shots and I was her bitch I think was the phrase she used. I got mad and for a moment I wanted to shut her up and dominate her," Seiras continued.

"Dominate her? That is so hot..." Daniella said with lustful breaths.

' _Why am I so good at lying? Should I be concerned about this? I was not expecting her to believe this story so easily,'_ Seiras thought as he tried to keep a deep thoughtful expression.

"Hot?" Seiras asked. He had never heard that in reference to a person before.

"Sexy...as in putting a woman in heat. Making her crave sex," she said suggestively.

Seiras cocked his head confused, "I see..."

"You ever think what would happen if you lost control like that again and kept going? You would have taken her right then and there. I have to say...it made me a bit jealous," she said looking at him with flushed cheeks and extremely dilated pupils.

' _Is she on drugs? That doesn't look normal_ ,' Seiras thought as he made eye contact with her. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to look back and simply had a calm, stoic face.

"Okay...it made me really jealous. I was already jealous enough of her before she seduced you. Now I hate her for it," the woman said as she started to climb onto the man.

"You were jealous of her for what?" he repeated the phrase in a question.

"Of how she was so beautiful that you couldn't control yourself...about how powerful, confident, and respected she is. About how she touched you and influenced you in a way that I couldn't. I want what she has. I want men and women to respect me and desire me like that. I want it all...I want it. I want what she doesn't deserve. You're so perfect, Seiras...can't you just let go with me like you did with her? I won't stop you. I never did properly thank you for saving my life," she said breathing lustfully as she straddled him and moved closer to his face.

' _She's already trying to seduce me?! I was not expecting this. What do I do now?'_ Seiras thought bewildered. He tried briefly to read her mind and see what she was thinking, but much to his surprise he couldn't without forcing it.

' _This is definitely wrong. Is this a test to see if I can be trusted? I guess I have to kiss her. This will not be enjoyable_ ,' the Blood Raven concluded mentally.

Before the woman could reach his face, Seiras leaned in first and kissed her. It felt incredibly unnatural and downright wrong to him as the woman practically attacked him. Unlike his kiss with Jessenta which was simple and pure, this one with Daniella was depraved and in his opinion gross.

She sucked, smacked, and bit his lips with aggressive lust. Seiras could practically taste the food she ate and the alcohol she drank as he felt her tongue trying to force its way inside his mouth. She persistently licked his lips until he begrudgingly let her tongue in. The heretic woman seemed to lose control as she passionately indulged herself in the eccstasy of the moment.

Seiras had never felt more uncomfortable in his entire life, and was doing anything in his willpower to remain calm and unsuspicious. Finally after what felt like an eternity, the woman stopped making out with him.

"Make me yours forever, Seiras...I never want this feeling to go away," she said as if she was getting high off of her own desire. Seiras prayed he would never have to do something so disturbing again.

' _Emperor please don't make me have to do anything else with this insane heretic...it's bad enough I let her defile my mouth. I just met her again and she's already obsessed with me? She is crazy._ ' Seiras thought to himself as he wondered what was coming next.

"How?" he asked.

"Make love to me..." she said lustfully.

' _Thank the emperor I'm in power armour or she would probably be trying to force it already_ ,' the man thought.

"Ah well...I can't really do that," Seiras replied.

She frowned, "Why not?"

"Space Marines have their sex drives heavily suppressed during our indoctrination. We're usually not able to experience sexual desire. Didn't you hear what Gregorius said in the mess hall?" Seiras replied.

"I thought that just meant you were too busy to have sex..." She said with a distraught look on her face.

 _'I dodged that disaster...I wonder if she'll trust me now?'_ Seiras thought.

"I know a way to get rid of that suppressed sex drive...but you might not like it." she said after a brief silence.

' _Ughh great of course you do. Wait let me guess...does it involve the benevolent chaos god Slaanesh?_ ' Seiras thought sarcastically.

"What is it? If it's something that means this much to you, I would like to know," Seiras asked.

 _'Please tell me it doesn't involve daemons...'_ the man thought.

"I don't want you to hate me for it," she said sadly.

"Hate you? What's so bad about it? What could possibly make me hate you?" Seiras asked as innocently as he could.

She looked at him, "Promise me...promise me if I tell you that you will understand. I-I don't want this thing between us to go away. I want to make love to you."

' _What in the name of the Emperor is this lunatic talking about? What thing between us? And what did she say? Make love?!'_ he thought bewildered. He already knew that he was at the edge of the rabbit hole now and this was the last step before falling in.

"Is it something...not allowed?" Seiras tried to bait her.

Daniella bit her lip and looked at him unsure of how to answer. Deciding to ease her fear of discovery or death, Seiras whispered to her, "Show me...I'll understand."

"Promise me you'll understand." she asked somewhat desperately.

"I promise," he said softly.

She was breathing heavily as if she was scared to continue. Considering the fact that he knew she was a heretic, Seiras could definitely understand why. Telling a normal space marine about your cult would usually get you killed immediately. Finally after a moment she stood up, "I'll show you."

Grabbing his hand, she guided him down the hall to what he assumed was her quarters. Upon entering her room, he saw it was empty. Her shipmates were undoubtedly off doing something else. It was very likely the guardsmen were on armsmen duty. Daniella reached into her belongings, and there she dug out a hidden little pendant. It was oddly shaped, but it didn't take Seiras long to recognize what it was...a Slaaneshi symbol.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Oh yeah...it's one of _these_ kind of stories. For this chapter, we got to see a bit of scheming, plotting, and lying. Tzeentch would be so proud of Seiras...it's all going as planned. By the way, this is your LAST WARNING...you can still turn back if you can't handle the heresy. We're going down the rabbit hole next chapter, so I hope you're all ready for smut.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Forbidden Secrets**

 _ **Avenger of Terra**_ **, Guardsmen Quarters**

Daniella held up the cultist pendant to the librarian, "Do you know what this is, Seiras?"

"A necklace with some type of cult symbol on it?" he answered.

The woman looked fearful and was visibly shaking as she took in every last bit of his reaction. With as much willpower as he could muster, Seiras feigned a curious expression lacking any hostility, "What is it, Danny?"

She bit her lip as tears fell down her face, "Please...please understand, Seiras. I'm not like the others...I just..."

"It's alright, Danny...just tell me what it is and why you're so scared of me seeing it?" he asked as he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

She looked up at him shaking fearfully, "I'm an acolyte in the Cult of Slaanesh..."

The woman closed her eyes and flinched half expecting Seiras to murder her on the spot for admitting her heresy. She opened her eyes after a few seconds confused and looked at the space marine, "I'm a heretic, Seiras...I can understand if you want to kill me."

He trained for half a day for what he would say and how he would react to the inevitable reveal. Seiras was rather surprised that he got her to spill the beans so early, but now he was in deep. One misstep could ruin the entire plot to uproot the heretics.

Reaching out and repeating the embrace she had done from the other day, Seiras hugged her gently, "Calm down, Danny...it's okay."

She looked up at him with tear-filled eyes and disbelief, "B-but, I'm a heretic...you kill heretics. You're part of the Inquisition...and you're a Space Marine!"

"If you didn't think I would understand, then why would you tell me? What did you think I was going to do?" Seiras asked genuinely curious.

Daniella looked up at him sadly, "I...I guess I wanted to hear it from an angel. To hear how pathetic I am. Why aren't you killing me right now? I'm hive trash...I turned my back on the Emperor. I guess I hoped that if you didn't understand then you could save me...or kill me. I'm so worthless..."

She was getting hysterical and upset now. Seiras honestly felt bad for her for a brief moment, ' _Did she hope that I could save her from the chaos taint_? _Maybe that's what she meant when she thought I had renewed her faith in the Emperor?'_

"Just calm down, Danny...let's talk about it. Why did you turn to this?" he asked curiously.

The woman practically went limp as she leaned into him and spoke, "There was a chaos cult uprising on Meridian...after the Tyrannid War and before the Exterminatus Fleet wiped out Typhon Primaris. I guess I just got pulled into it. You saved my life years ago, but my entire family died. I was an orphan...a young girl with no money, no family, and no faith. I used to be a worthless hive whore...selling my body for my next meal. I had nobody until they took me in. The things I've done in the Cult of Slaanesh...the things I've experienced. They're so amazing compared to the shitty life I had before. They make me feel happy, empowered, and important despite being a nobody in the Imperial Guard. I know everyone says it's evil, but being in it is the only thing that keeps me from hating myself...and from hating this life of mine. It's the only thing that makes me happy."

"If you hate the guard then why did you join it?" Seiras asked curiously.

She shook her head with tear-filled eyes, "I already told you that before. Part of me wanted to do my part for humanity...part of me thought that maybe one day I would see you again. It sucked for a long time being away from the cult...being away from home. I considered suicide many times...until I met my mentor."

"What did your cult think about you joining the Imperial Guard?" Seiras asked carefully. He wanted to make sure that he did not ask her about the mentor, or if she had fellow cultists on the ship. It would no doubt arouse suspicion and cause her to shut down.

Daniella frowned, "Well some of them did too. A lot of us spread to the far stars, but I've befriended a lot of likeminded people thanks to my mentor. There's even some of them on this ship. We're not bad people, we just aren't the cut and dry machines that the rest of the Imperium is. Chaos worship isn't all about daemons and sacrifcing people. That's just what the Inquisition wants everyone to believe. It's got benevolent, good-intentioned people who practice it as well. Chaos isn't evil...it just has evil people who practice it and make the rest of us look bad. The Inquisition is so afraid of people knowing that there's more to life than just endless sacrifice. They want to keep us little people down and deprive us of any dignity."

"Did your mentor teach you that?" Seiras asked as non-condescendingly as possible. It was extremely hard for him to do so as he wanted to punch her head off for thinking something so stupid.

The woman nodded, "Yes, so what do you think, Seiras? Am I a terrible person? I still love the Emperor...but I've found so much fulfillment in this Cult of Slaanesh. My mentor says that it's okay to believe in both. Is it though? What should I have done, Seiras? Am I pathetic for giving in to a reprieve from my suffering?"

Seiras was not used to seeing this type of vulnerability in other people. The female guardsman looked completely lost and sad. Seiras could genuinely detect an uncertainty in her feelings and quickly began to realize that she wanted him to justify whether she was morally right or wrong.

' _This is pathetic...she doesn't wholeheartedly believe in one faith or another. She feels bad about turning her back on the Emperor, but is trying to justify her sins by saying that her cult isn't evil. It can't be easy though...I remember how depraved the lower hives of Meridian were when we found Thaddeus. I wonder if I would have felt the same in her situation? She truly has no sense of self-worth and needs something to validate her pitiful existence. It's a shame she found that fulfillment in a chaos cult. She might have been a decent person if she had been raised under a different set of circumstances. Maybe if I was faster that day I could have saved her family...is her fall to heresy my fault?_ ' Seiras thought to himself distantly.

"I've encountered chaos many times in my life. It's always been strange to wonder why my own battle brothers fell to something like it. One brother of mine described it quite well to me. He said that chaos was the natural state of existence. Unpredictable...Unstoppable...and free of all control. He claimed that it was in our nature to be indulgent, bloodthirsty, and to seek our own glory. He said I was a fool to suffer needlessly, and die forgotten, when the ruinous powers offered so much more. For years I thought it was simple blasphemy, but when I think about the time before I was a space marine back in the deserts of Calderis...it just makes me wonder how differently I would have viewed it from the bottom of human society. It's easy to think that dying for the Emperor is completely righteous when you're one of his holy warriors. But when you're suffering in squallor and nobody seems to look out for you or care...it's hard to think the same way." Seiras said faking empathy. The story itself and his understanding of the human condition was true, but Seiras did not feel that way at all. He knew chaos was evil from the depths of his soul, and the people of his homeworld were fiercely loyal to the Imperium.

The woman looked at him smiling, "That's exactly how I feel...I didn't expect you to understand it so well. In fact I'm amazed a space marine would ever understand..."

 _'The only thing I understand is how stupid you are...'_ Seiras couldn't help but think.

"We're more alike than I thought...the only real difference between us, Danny, is that I became a space marine. I probably would be just like you if I didn't. Maybe Slaanesh does have an answer to this emptiness I feel inside of me," Seiras lied. It physically hurt his stomach to lie about something like this, but he ignored the feeling as best he could.

' _C'mon heretic...take the bait_ ,' Seiras thought to himself seriously.

"Slaanesh can offer a lot. She can make desires a reality...a prayer to Slaanesh could reverse your hypno-indoctrination and free your desires. True freedom and true pleasure could be yours too. And we could...make love. That is assuming you'd even be interested in someone like me," she said distantly with an insecure expression.

He was trying his best to sort through all of the courtship advice that Viggo gave him in this situation. He remembered the space wolf talking about how to respond if a woman started getting insecure.

Seiras thought for a moment on the best way to reply to the woman before finally speaking, "A girl who thinks like me is the kind of girl for me."

The Blood Raven directly stole that line word for word from his Space Wolf brother. The Fenrisian would often say it when referring to the women from his home planet. Seiras never really understood the entirety of it until this very moment.

"A-are you saying you would be interested in me?" the woman asked desperately.

"Maybe, but I think we should get to know each other better," Seiras replied. He could barely believe how wrong this conversation felt to him. Even more so because he was lying and decieving her into trusting him.

He stared at her trying to maintain an empathetic expression, _'This is the most dishonourable thing I've done...I actually managed to convince her to trust me? Commander Silvina was right. These cultists are delusional lunatics. I can't believe this is actually working.'_

Daniella's face was flushed and her eyes were bright with happiness. She placed a hand over her chest and stared at him, "You really are perfect, Seiras..."

 _'Only the Emperor came close to be perfect you blind fool_ ,' Seiras thought as he faked a smile.

Seiras knew it would probably be suspicious if he asked about joining her cult or meeting her mentor, so he figured he would have to make her feel like she was inviting him into her dark little world. For that to work he would have to act distant...but not too distant.

"I'm not...but I appreciate your sentiment. This has been a pretty interesting talk, Danny. I've always wondered if chaos is truly as bad as my leaders say it is. It can't be completely evil if such a nice person like you is a follower," he said looking into her eyes.

"It's not, Seiras. I'm glad you're open-minded about it," she said smiling.

' _An open mind is like a fortress with its gates unbarred and unguarded_ ,' Seiras remembered a popular quote spoken in his chapter. ' _This nonsense is all heretical evil...I don't care what she tells me. People like her are the reason chaos is such a huge threat to mankind...they're gullible fools.'_

She seemed a lot more secure that Seiras was trustworthy now and was reverting back to her lustful state from earlier.

' _C'mon, heretic...make me the offer already_ ,' he thought to himself.

"I...I can show you if you'd like. Nothing crazy or evil...just a little taste of my world. A little bit of pleasure never hurt anyone," the woman said lustfully.

The man pretended like he wasn't sure, "I don't know..."

"C'mon, Seiras...you hate the Inquisitor. You feel trapped and unhappy like me. Just trust me like I trusted you. I can make it worth your while. You'll experience pleasure like you've never felt before. It makes life so much better. You and I could share something beautiful," Daniella tried to convince him.

' _Forgive me Emperor for going along with this heretic's offer...I don't want this. I just have to do it so I can help the Sororitas slaughter these degenerates_ ,' Seiras prayed in his head.

"You're right...I want to know what it's like," Seiras said in acceptance.

' _Hopefully she'll tell me where the other traitors are. One of them has to be a witch...that's the only explanation for the psychic interference. I'll bet it's their leader. Most likely her mentor too_ ,' the man thought.

"There are others on this ship...I-I should talk to them and see what they say about your interest. If they agree, then I'll take you to them," Daniella said hopefully.

"I should go back to my quarters then...how long will you need?" Seiras wondered.

Daniella thought for a moment, "About a day or two...give me time to ask some of my other friends. We can all meet up and talk about it together."

' _Under normal circumstances I would suspect a trap, but she doesn't seem the type smart enough to pull it off. I could easily slaughter them, so I doubt they'll try to kill me...especially while we're traveling through the warp still. If they agree then I'll have them cornered_ ,' Seiras thought to himself.

"Okay then...i'll be here this time tomorrow," the man replied.

"N-no...it will be kind of dangerous if people see us walking together. Those Sororitas have been snooping around for some reason. Considering you're you, I wouldn't doubt if they suspected you of something. Just meet me at the mess hall corridor we spoke at the other day. Try meeting me there in two days at this time and I'll let you know what my mentor says," Daniella replied.

"See you then, Daniella..." Seiras said as he thought he was about to leave.

"One more thing Seiras, if they agree then you have to do a rite of initiation to prove your interest," She said seriously.

"What does that involve?" he asked.

"It's a secret...but everyone who joins in our circle has to do it. They might be a bit frightened when they hear about you since you're a space marine. Your initiation might include extra rites just to make them actually trust you," Daniella explained.

"I suppose if it's nothing crazy I might consider it," Seiras said carefully.

"It won't be anything evil. Our cult isn't like that. I promise you that it's not bad," Daniella tried to reassure him.

Seiras nodded, "Alright, well I will meet you in two solar days then."

"Give me one more kiss before you go...Seiras," the woman said as she ran over and tried to jump up on him. She wrapped her legs around his waist as she extended up to kiss him again. It was just as feral and unnatural as the previous one, but Seiras was at least getting better at it now.

After it was over, she dropped down with a proud grin. Her eyes lit up as Seiras turned to leave again, "Oh...one more thing. I need something of yours as proof I talked to you and that you trust me. It'll make them feel better about trusting you in return."

The man pulled one of the purity seals off of his armor. Ironically enough it had the words, _Always faithful_ written on the bottom of it and had the Blood Raven symbol. Seiras always liked this purity seal as it had been personally given to him by Davian Thule many years ago.

Daniella took it eagerly, "That will do nicely...see you in two days,"

' _If anything happens to that purity seal, I'm burning her alive. She's a complete idiot for actually thinking a space marine would be interested in joining a cult_ ,' Seiras thought as he left the room.

As he left and began walking back to his quarters in hanger 5, he noticed one of the sororitas halfway down the hallway. She nodded at him as if she knew what was going on.

Seiras looked at her but made no gesture as he passed on his way back to the hanger. He knew that they were going to watch him, and had no reason to blow his cover yet by addressing her.

Upon returning to his quarters, he noticed all of his fellow Kill Team members training and doing some form or another of mission preparation. They all perked up at his return, but didn't question where he had been.

Space marines were well known for pacing around a ship while in warp travel...librarians even more so.

 **Avenger of Terra, 6 hours later**

Seiras was currently on his way up to the bridge of the ship. Atia called for his arrival for some unknown reason, and he had no choice but to respond.

As he came up an elevator and into the beautiful command bridge of the Emperor Class Battleship, Seiras took a few turns and made his way down towards the officer's quarters. It wasn't hard to locate Atia's quarters as she had Stormtroopers outside of it holding rifles.

"I'm here to see the Inquisitor Atia Castilla by her order," Seiras explained immediately as he approached the Tempestus Scions. Before they could even reply or do anything, Atia exited her room as if expecting him at that very moment.

"Ah, Seiras...you wasted no time getting here. That is good to see," Atia spoke in a calm and approving way.

"How may I help you, madame Inquisitor?" he asked respectfully.

She stepped aside and held a hand up, "Come inside, I want to talk to you in private."

The stormtroopers all seemed a bit confused at her actions, but Seiras chose not to think about it as he simpy obeyed her command and walked inside. Atia was quick to seal the door behind them and lock it after he entered.

"What did you want to speak about?" Seiras asked after an awkward silence. He was not interested in spending any more time around Atia than he needed to.

"Commander Jessenta Silvina...what is your impression of her?" Atia began.

"She's surprisingly tall for a woman and seems like an aggressive sister of battle," Seiras said calmly. He was not entirely sure what the Inquisitor wanted him to say, and chose to simply state the obvious.

"That's not what I mean, Seiras, and you know it. What is your impression of her? Does something seem off about her to you?" Atia asked.

Seiras shrugged, "No more than any other Sororita I've encountered. Why are you asking me?"

"This is why," Atia said sternly as she pressed a button causing her servo skull to play video footage.

The footage showed Jessenta stalking Seiras down various corridors from the other day. He immediately recognized it as right after Atia sent them both to their quarters. Luckily there was no footage of Daniella or of him and Jessenta interracting, but Atia's paranoid awareness had noticed the Sororita following him and probably knew about them crossing paths.

 _'She was looking at video footage of us after sending us to our quarters...'_ Seiras thought to himself as he stared blankly at Atia.

"The cameras don't show when the two of you cross paths, but her last location would have been in your way. Considering she was following you, I was just wondering if you two spoke at all?" Atia asked inquisitively.

"We ran into each other. She wanted to ask me if I've ever fought daemonettes before. I told her no and she gave me some lecture about how experienced she was and why I needed to obey her orders," Seiras told half of the truth.

"Hmm...Is that all she wanted?" Atia wondered with a suspicious tone.

"The two of us kissed too," Seiras said almost casually as he framed the truth in an absurd way hoping she wouldn't believe it. He knew Atia was going to be incredibly persistent unless he found a way to derail her interrogation and distract her. Thankfully it seemed to work because she gave him a wide-eyed stare.

"You...what?! Did you just tell a joke, Seiras?" she asked him disbelievingly for a moment.

"I guess it wasn't funny?" Seiras responded with a feigned confusion.

' _She thinks I'm joking? Good...I can use this to my advantage_ ,' he thought seriously.

"What's wrong with you? You're the first space marine who has ever tried to tell me a joke like that. You kissed a Sister of Battle? Haha," Atia couldn't help but laugh now.

Seiras gave her a blank look and spoke casually, "It was pretty absurd to imagine I take it?"

"Yes, haha! A Sororita and an Astartes kissing?! That was an unexpected joke coming from you, Seiras. I haven't heard something that funny in a long time," Atia chuckled a few more moments before regaining her composure.

' _Seeing her laugh is incredibly disturbing. I didn't know she had emotions other than anger and disappointment_ ,' Seiras thought to himself.

"If this is your way of trying to make light of the situation, then I'll accept your word for it. I just found her behavior strange and wondered if you knew anything about it," Atia stated as she eased up slightly.

"I am not the best judge of what defines normal behavior in people, madame inquisitor. I am a space marine after all," Seiras said simply.

The woman sighed, "Not a proper one, that's for sure. Commander Silvina going out of her way to speak with you personally leads me to wonder if the Ordo Hereticus is investigating you. You're quite infamous to them from what I understand...were it not for the exoneration of the Ordo Xenos, they would have likely executed you for heresy by now. I have no doubts that Jessenta Silvina is suspicious of you. Are you sure she said nothing else to you that I should know about?"

"She also said you were a bitch," Seiras said calmly.

Atia shook her head with a smirk at his comment, "Did she now? Pfft...so the pot is calling the kettle black I see."

"What does that mean?" Seiras said raising a brow.

"It's an old saying meant to express irony. It means she's a bitch and is ironically condemning me as one. It would be the equivalent of you hating someone for being a psyker, essentially," Atia explained.

"You don't seem to like the Adepta Sororitas, Inquisitor." Seiras stated factually.

"I am not fond of them. Did you know I was chosen to be a Sororita when I was younger? However, due to my Psyker talents, I was given to the Inquisition instead. I am very thankful for that. I would not want to be a bolter bitch."

"Why do you call them that? It seems immature for someone of your position to do," Seiras said confused.

"Old habits die hard I suppose. I'm not the cut and dry, by the books type of Inquisitor. I'm sure you can relate considering that you're not a typical Astartes," the woman explained as she brushed her long black hair out of her face. Atia's hazel eyes drifted down as she examined a record in her hands. There was a brief silence as she looked over it.

"Will that be all, Inquisitor?" Seiras asked bluntly hoping to speed the process of leaving along.

"You in a hurry to get away from me, Seiras? No it won't be all. You need to make amends if we are to work together. I think there's something else that the two of us need to discuss as well while we're both here," Atia spoke up halting Seiras from leaving.

 _'I need to get away from her. There's no telling what this is going to be about.'_ the Blood Raven thought to himself as he awaited her interrogation.

"I've been rereading your Ordo Xenos records, and I finally understand why behave the way you do. Every Ordo Xenos Inquisitor you have ever worked for has had nothing but immaculate praise for you. At first I found it unusual considering how much of a problem you have with my authority, but now I finally know why you were given so much free rein," Atia began.

Seiras kept a straight face and said nothing as Atia tried to gauge his reaction.

After seeing that the librarian wasn't going to comment, Atia decided to continue, "Inquisitor Jena Orichiel's writings on you are as follows: ' _Seiras was accepted into the Ordo Xenos in a large part due to my request for him. Prior to his joining the Deathwatch, anonymous reports from the Blood Ravens and first company Blood Angels claimed he had the ability to read and speak the Eldar language which is the primary reason why he was recruited into my service. He was also rumored to understand Eldar technology. It came as a great blessing to me when I discovered that this was an unexaggerated truth. Seiras being a librarian and an individualistic Astartes made him even more of a lucky catch. Unlike most Astartes, he and I shared a similar interest in xenos technology and culture. For this reason I personally entrusted him with many secret duties, and used him as a personal agent of mine on the battlefield. During our years together, I had him plunder many xenos relics and weapons during missions, to which he always delivered to me with respectable secrecy. He was especially useful in looting space hulks and Necron tomb worlds. Unlike other Deathwatch marines, he did everything I asked of him even if it contradicted the Codex Astartes. He is an invaluable asset when it comes to dealing with anything Eldar in nature and is capable of recovering anything you ask him to retrieve. The insights he delivered to the Ordo Xenos about the Eldar race have exonerated him of any reprecussions to the rest of the Inquisition signed and validated by our Inquisitor Lord. I speak on behalf of many within the Ordo Xenos when I say that Seiras is invaluable to the Inquisition and the Imperium as a whole.'"_

"I didn't know she thought that highly of me. I always thought she was a bit too arrogant and petty," Seiras said simply after hearing Atia read the record aloud.

"That's only a highlight, Seiras. The part at the end where you were reassigned was an interesting part to read," Atia said slowly as she took in Seiras' reaction.

The librarian stared at her blankly, "Why is that?"

"It says the Lord Inquisitor personally took you away from her and reassigned you. Her writings on the matter are rather...personal. Would you care to hear what she thought about losing you?" Atia asked.

Seiras shook his head, "I could care less what she thought about me. She was a bit too friendly with Xenos for my liking. I was glad to be reassigned. She was always more interested in working with Xenos than understanding how to better kill them."

"Yet you obeyed her every command without question. Judging by the way she wrote this record on you, it would seem you were possibly her favorite Astartes that she ever worked with," Atia remarked.

The Blood Raven gave Atia a careless look, "So what?"

"You do realize she's the reason you weren't executed for heresy right? Had any other Inquisitor not in the Xenos Hybris taken an interest in your skills, you would not be alive right now. Essentially what it sums up to is you are well liked by many Inquisitors because you will do anything they tell you to...even if it's immoral and heretical. You will do anything to stay on their good side because you know they're the only thing keeping the Ordo Hereticus away from you. Am I right?" she asked.

"You are," Seiras simply answered.

"I thought so...in that case you should know that I also have the authority to declare you a heretic should you ever disobey me. You are completely at my mercy here, Seiras...which is why I found it strange that you don't respect my authority. I believe you and I can get along quite well if we start over from the beginning. You can start making your amends by apologizing to me," Atia said darkly.

"You have my sincerest apologies, Inquisitor Atia," Seiras said somewhat respectfully.

Atia narrowed her gaze, "Try again...that did not sound very convincing."

"I'm sorry madame Inquisitor," Seiras decided to give her a more plain apology.

"Hmm...are you? Actions speak louder than words. Kneel, Seiras," Atia said with a slight grin.

The Blood Raven slowly knelt down with a blank look on his face. Mentally he was a bit annoyed that Atia was being so petty, ' _What is her problem? Why is she forcing me to do all of this_?'

Atia smirked as she walked around him, "I want a real apology now."

The librarian gave her a somewhat disapproving look, ' _I've never dealt with an Inquisitor that acted this petulant before. How in Holy Terra did she become an Inquisitor? What does she want me to do?'_

Seiras simply stared at her confused for a full thirty seconds. Afterward her face soured into annoyance. She held up her foot to him, "Show me you're really sorry...I won't accept anything short of some humility on your part."

He stared at her confused and did nothing for several seconds. Atia got more annoyed and pressed against his chest with her foot, "You know what I want you to do...don't act like you don't."

' _Is she serious?!'_ Seiras thought disbelievingly as Atia pulled her leg back and wagged her boot in front of him.

"Take it, Seiras...lick my boot," she said seriously.

The librarian could barely fathom how ridiculous the situation had escalated to. Atia actually wanted him to lick her boot as an apology? Seiras had seen and done many strange things in his time, but this had to be up there as one of the most bizarre. He could barely believe this was actually happening.

Reluctantly he grabbed a hold of Atia's boot causing her to grin, "That's it, librarian...show me you're sorry, and I'll forgive you."

"Is this really necessary, Inquisitor? Belittling my pride won't make me any more sincere. Is there nothing else I can do instead?" Seiras finally spoke hoping to avoid the humiliating act.

"This is a lesson in humility. Obeying my commands should mean more to you than your damn pride. Remember when I told you what would happen if you disobeyed me again? Would you like me to execute you for heresy and bring shame to your chapter? I don't think the Blood Ravens can afford another stain on their honour can they?" Atia asked darkly.

' _Jessenta was right...she is a bitch_ ,' Seiras thought to himself as he remained motionless. He looked up and examined Atia's face which was flushed with a childish and gleeful amusement.

' _I hate this damn Inquisitor...she's enjoying this way too much. She knows I have no choice but to obey her. I just can't believe an Inquisitor would actually do something this petty and unbecoming just to prove a point. There has to be some way I can get out of this situation...I am NOT licking her boot! I'll sooner face the consequences of refusing,_ ' Seiras thought bitterly.

"Be thankful we're doing this in private. I could have made you do this in front of your Kill Team, but I'm being merciful right now. You have three seconds to lick my boot...prove to me you're sorry or else," she gave him an ultimatum.

' _Are Inquisitors allowed to do this to Astartes? Damn it...I wonder what Commander Jessenta or her sororitas would do in this situation? Wait...that gives me an idea.'_ Seiras thought to himself as he stared blankly at Atia.

"One," Atia said glaring daggers at him.

He looked at her uncertainly, ' _I wonder if it will even work on her? There's no telling how she'll react if I do something like that. It could very well backfire and get me into an even deeper mess. Still, either way, I'm never licking her boot...so I would be in trouble regardless. This is the only real option other than retaliation or acceptance.'_

"Two," the Inquisitor spoke darkly and even more threateningly.

' _This is hardly a better alternative though. There's no doubt in my mind I'm going to regret this later. Emperor protect me...'_ Seiras thought as he dropped Atia's foot and stood up.

She seemed shocked by his actions, and could barely react in time as Seiras picked her up off the ground.

"What are you doi-" before Atia could even finish her question, Seiras interrupted her with a simple kiss very similar to how Jessenta did it. The Inquisitor was stunned by the impossibility of the moment and could only stare in disbelief as Seiras put her down and stepped back.

Atia had never been this caught off guard in her entire life and could only gawk in silence as Seiras stood there.

 _'I definitely should not have done that...'_ Seiras immediately regretted his actions as Atia started walking towards him.

He stood there stalwartly awaiting the consequences as Atia reached up and slapped him as hard as she possibly could. A large red handprint decorated the side of his face for a moment, before quickly fading. It didn't hurt him at all, but Seiras could tell Atia put some force behind her slap because her palm was completely red as well. He had no doubts that slap would have sent a normal man to the ground out cold.

Atia growled furiously at him, "What the fuck!? Have your lost your damn mind, Seiras?! By the Emperor, did you seriously just kiss me?!"

' _What was I thinking...of course she was going to lose her mind over this. Everyone tells me I'm attractive...I guess not to her. What do I do now? I'm not just going to let them kill me...but if I manage to escape and get branded a heretic, I'll have nowhere to go. Plus we're in the warp right now...there's no escaping this ship. I'm really pinned here aren't I? Should I have just licked her boot and moved on? I screwed this plan up badly'_ Seiras was already brainstorming on his available options as Atia got more heated.

"Why the hell did you kiss me, Seiras?! Answer me, damn it! Do understand what that means you fool?!" Atia hissed.

 _'I wonder how she would react if I pretended to like her the way I did with that Daniella woman? It's worth a shot I suppose...this situation couldn't possibly get much worse_ ,' Seiras thought.

He looked at Atia calmly, "Who wouldn't want to kiss you? You're a beautiful woman, Inquisitor."

"What the?! Are you...attracted to me?!" Atia deadpanned with utter shock.

Seiras said nothing as he looked away, ' _How am I supposed to answer this? Let me think here. The goal is make her think I like her and seduce her into letting me off the hook. Should I just say yes, or is better to deny it? I wonder what she would think if I actually managed to make this plan work?'_

"I thought it was more sincere," Seiras replied as he looked away. It was the only thing he could think to say while stalling for time.

"More sincere?! Oh...now I get it! This is the real reason why all those other Inquisitors liked you so much isn't it?" Atia said shaking her head.

"I've never kissed another Inquisitor before. You're the first," Seiras said honestly.

"Oh really? Well you certainly seemed to know how to do it...I wonder was that joke earlier about kissing the Sororita meant to butter me up or something?! Hmph...I don't even know what to say. I don't know whether to feel flattered or horrified. Tell me seriously, Seiras, did you enjoy that kiss?" Atia asked him with a less angry tone.

"It was certainly better than licking your boot would have been," he answered honestly.

Atia paced around for a moment as she examined him up and down, "You're not getting out of that by the way. You've just dug yourself a deeper hole. But how about instead of licking my boot, you kiss my feet...come and do it! I mean if you're attracted to me then you ought to enjoy it right?"

Seiras could only watch with pure disgust as Atia pulled her foot out of her boot, "Kiss my foot, Seiras...last chance to apologize to me. Do it and I'll pretend like you didn't just fail in your attempt to seduce me."

' _I have no choice. She's not going to get over this until I show complete subservience to her. If I refuse now I'll get branded a heretic and killed. Damn it...that means I just kissed her for nothing. How repulsive_ ,' Seiras thought as he knelt over and grabbed Atia's bare foot.

Slowly he pressed his lips against it causing Atia to practically giggle at him, "Lick it too...I want it nice and clean."

' _I should have just let them kill me...this is the worst punishment ever_ ,' Seiras thought to himself as he licked Atia's foot.

"Are you enjoying this, Seiras? I certainly am," Atia said almost wickedly.

' _At least nobody else is around to see this...'_ Seiras took some solace in the fact that his dignity would at least be preserved for everyone else.

He continued for a good minute until Atia was finally satisfied with his humiliation, "That's enough for now, Seiras...apology accepted."

' _Thank the Emperor...get me out of here! I'd rather be mingling with those heretics right now. If Jonah could see me now...he's disown me from the librarium_ ,' Seiras thought to himself as he stood up.

"Now that I've had time to think about it, I'm flattered, Seiras...truly flattered that a handsome Astartes like you is attracted to me. That being said, I'm also a bit disturbed that you are interested in things like this. You're definitely the weirdest space marine I've ever met. You better act right or everyone is going to know about this...and don't you ever fucking kiss me again without my consent! Is that understood?!" Atia spoke strongly.

"Yes Inquisitor...may I leave now?" he replied.

' _Just let me go already...'_ Seiras thought impatiently. Currently he was trying to fathom how he felt more uncomfortable with Atia than he did around a cultist like Daniella.

"Now that you've apologized, we can start building our trust up together. How would you like to do something to get on my good side?" Atia said with a slight grin as Seiras inched his way towards the door.

The Blood Raven and the Inquisitor stared at each other for a long moment of silence. Atia was thoroughly reading his every expression and movement in anticipation.

Seiras took a moment to actually ponder her question before answering, "I would prefer staying in your good graces if only to avoid unnecessary...problems in the future. What do you want me to do?"

"Excellent, now you're starting to understand how things work here. There is something you can do if you want to be _friends_ with me, Seiras. Since you're apparently good at keeping secrets and doing unconventional 'dirty work', I have a special assignment for you..." Atia said with an almost anxious look

"What might that be?" he asked somewhat curiously.

"Find out why the Sororitas are really here. They're obviously here for another purpose than the one they've told us. I want you to use your _talents_ to get on their good side and report their intentions to me. I don't like the Ecclesiarchy trying to undermine the Ordo Malleus. Do that and I'll give you a real kiss," Atia explained with a wink.

Seiras felt his insides literally shudder at the sight of her winking at him, _'Why is she all of a sudden enjoying the notion of me liking her? Emperor what have I done? She's convinced I'm attracted to her now. All of my planning and plans for getting out of this mess counted for nothing. Now she's going to hold this over me forever. I already know why the sororitas are here, but I can't exactly tell her until we find the heretics. This mission just keeps getting worse and worse.'_

"I can do that, Inquisitor. Give me a few days and I'll know what they're here for," Seiras nodded.

"Eager for that real kiss huh?" Atia teased him.

He shook his head, "No, madame Inquisitor. Just pretend that never happened. I will do what you ask if we never again speak of this."

"There's no need to be embarrassed, Seiras. I'm not offended that you like me...I just don't want you forcing yourself on me without my permission. To be honest I think it's kind of funny that an Astartes has a crush on me. You must like powerful women," she said with a light smile.

"I don't have that kind of interest in you, madame Inquisitor," Seiras replied stoically.

Atia walked right up to him and grinned at the librarian and winked, "Mhmm, of course you don't. This will be our little secret. We wouldn't want you getting in trouble for suspicious behavior now would we?"

"No...madame Inquisitor," he replied slowly.

' _She's completely outplayed me in this situation. I would have been better off just licking her boot_ ,' Seiras thought to himself.

"Just call me Atia now, Seiras. You might as well since you were so interested in being on a first name basis with me." the woman grinned.

"Of course...Atia," he said slowly as he reached for the door and left as quickly as possible.

After he was gone the Inquisitor sat down on her bed and touched her lips, ' _That was unexpected...getting kissed by a Space Marine is something I never thought I'd do in my lifetime. This ought to be amusing putting up with him from here on out. Now I get why all those other Inquisitors liked him...he flirted with them.'_

Meanwhile after Seiras left Atia's room, he caught the attention of several Stormtroopers and officers. They stared at him with confusion as he departed as quickly as he could. The librarian was practically running to get as far away from the bridge as he could.

"He was in there for a while...I wonder what that was all about?" one of the Stormtroopers asked his buddy.

"No telling...but he's definitely in a hurry to leave. It couldn't have been good," the other replied.

As he charged away, Seiras quickly went around the corner and accidentally knocked over several individuals who were walking down the hallway. There were three of them and they all went flying in every direction as he bulldozed past.

Seiras immediately stopped in his tracks upon realizing it, and looked around at the individuals he just knocked over. One was an astropath, one was a navigator, and the other was simply their servant by the looks of it.

They all stood up after a moment much to his relief, but appeared very unhappy about getting knocked down. The Astropath looked furious as he immediately voiced his anger, "Watch where you're going you fool! I will have you whipped for th-"

It was at that moment, the astropath realized the person responsible was none other than Seiras. He immediately decided against finishing his threat as he gawked at the Blood Raven, "You're one of the space marines?! I librarian too..."

The navigator walked over with an angry face, "Hey, watch where you're going fool! I am a daughter of the Ferraci House and I will NOT be treated in this manner! How dare you knock me over!"

The librarian looked at her seriously and spoke with an aggressive voice, "I'm honestly amazed you didn't hear me coming. Power armour isn't exactly quiet. Are you deaf or just too proud to move aside!?"

She looked like she wanted to say something but stopped herself after getting a good look at Seiras. He took this time to examine her and was rather surprised at her appearance. She looked like Terran royalty judging by the ridiculously fancy clothes and her regal demaenor. The woman was tall and thin, but not in a gangly way. She had long black hair, dark makeup, and surprisingly beautiful eyes. Like many navigators, the white scleras in her eyes had turned black, but unnatural and radiant pinkish-purple irises shined within them. It was almost as if her irises were the color of the warp itself. Seiras honestly thought she might have been the most alluring female he had ever seen before.

A strange mechanical headpiece which looked a lot like a crown was also on her head. It came around and blocked the middle of her forehead in what appeared to be an ocular visor. Her robes looked more like a dress and if he didn't know any better Seiras would have thought she was actually royalty.

The Astropath was also surprisingly good looking and had short white hair with light blue eyes. He had a lithe frame, but was quite tall. His clothing looked just as prestigious as the Navigator's did and the man had a surprisingly inviting aura about him despite being a psyker. A band was over his forehead and several psy cables were also attached to his head from behind.

"Forgive us my lord...we did not expect a Space Marine to come running around the corner. Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Ahmeris Krassius, Astropath and psyker for the Imperium. Also nobleborn son of the Krassius family from Holy Terra. Forgive my astonishment, but I have never met an Astartes in person before. I've only seen them in the videos of the parades on Holy Terra. Truly it is an honour to make your acquaintance...I never thought I would meet a librarian." he said aristocratically and respectfully.

Seiras just gave the man a blank look, "Why do you think I would care?"

"I...umm, that is to say I do not mean to waste your time my lord. Obviously, you were in a hurry. Look at me rambling on in my admiration. Please accept my humblest apologies lord librarian," the astropath bowed his head.

"Do you have any idea who I am?!" the navigator interrupted as she glared at Seiras.

"Should I?" the Blood Raven countered.

"This is the Navis Primaris of our ship my lord. She is our lead navigator...her name is Amelia Ferraci," Ahmeris introduced the woman.

"I don't care. I barely care what the Inquisitor thinks let alone some pompous nobles," was all Seiras bothered to say.

The servant looked too afraid to speak as her masters stared the librarian down. The navigator spoke up furiously, "Pompous nobles?! How dare you insult us in such a manner! Get back here at once and apologize to me!"

"I've done enough apologizing for one day," was all Seiras said in response as he decided to turn around and start walking away.

After he left, Ahmeris glanced over at Amelia disbelievingly, "By the looks of it, he just left Inquisitor Atia's quarters. He did not appear to be in a good mood."

"Good mood or not, he should at least show us some respect," Amelia protested.

"I am certain he meant nothing by it. Space marines are not the most personable individuals from what I understand," the Astropath explained.

"Masters, forgive me interruption, but I've heard rumors about the Deathwatch marines on the ship. They say the Blood Raven one almost started a fight with the Adepta Sororitas. That looked like him. I think his name is Seiras," the servant spoke up.

"Seiras?" the navigator said the name surprised.

"Something wrong, Lady Amelia?" Ahmeris asked.

She nodded her head, "I've heard that name whispered in the warp. There's something suspicious about him. He might very well be a heretic if the Sororitas dislike him so."

"You would accuse a Deathwatch Space Marine of being a heretic?" Ahmeris gawked.

"We should look into the warp and see if we can find out anything about him," she replied as she turned to walk away.

 **Two Days Later**

After training and meditating for the majority of the day, Seiras and his brothers went to sleep again. The librarian only slept for about three hours before getting up and going for another long walk. It was also almost time for him to meet Daniella again. The entire past day, he had been dreading the inevitable meeting with the cultist girl.

Even still, he preferred her company over that of Atia's. As the librarian walked through the ship, his mind raced over the scene with Atia again, ' _Damn it, I was such a fool to do something like that! I should have known better. I overestimated myself...I will not let Atia put me in a situation like that again_.'

Seiras eventually made his way to the corridor where Daniella told him to meet her and as expected, he saw her waiting there. He briefly looked around for any recording devices and was relieved to see none. Apparently Daniella wanted this location for more than one reason.

As he walked up to her the woman perked up with eagerness, "Seiras, glad to see you made it. I've been here for about an hour now, and was starting to think you weren't coming."

"I wouldn't tell you to expect me and not arrive. That's dishonourable," Seiras replied.

"Oh of course. I knew you wouldn't forget about me. That's why I waited," Daniella said with a beaming smile.

' _As pathetic and stupid as she is, the woman is at least tolerable as a human being_ ,' Seiras couldn't help but think.

"You seem to be in good spirits. How did your friends react to my interest?" Seiras asked as he approached her.

Daniella's face was concerned as she looked at him, "Well initially they were a bit scared when I told them about you. Everyone said I was crazy for telling you about the cult...but when I showed them this seal and I told them about the way you understood me, they seemed a bit more understanding. I made sure to tell them that you don't like the Inquisitor and that you were...interested in me."

"I see...well their concern is definitely understandable. A normal space marine would kill them without a second thought," Seiras noted.

"That's what I told them. They were all just as surprised as I was about it...but considering how much you hate the Inquisitor, my mentor did not find it as strange as the rest of us. Obviously you would have reported us to the Inquisitor if you truly wanted us dead," Daniella whispered.

The librarian nodded, "I see...so what did they decide on then?"

"Well, they want to meet you...but they're a bit scared to. My mentor suggested that if you showed up without weapons or power armour on, then it would make everyone feel less threatened. I realize that puts you in a vulnerable position, but that's one of the conditions they want if they are to meet you. The other condition is that you do the rite of initiation before meeting everyone," Daniella explained.

' _No power armour...they're hoping they can kill me if I turn out to be a threat. Granted their willingness to go this far implies that have some degree of trust for me. A normal Astartes would have already gotten an army to tear the ship apart for all the cultists. I seriously don't understand why Jessenta did not want to just hunt them down and interrogate everyone. I suppose getting inside information would pay off better in the long run_ ,' Seiras theorized.

"So what is this rite of initiation? What do I have to do for it?" Seiras asked again.

"I can't tell you, but I promise that it's not bad. My mentor actually wants to be the one to initiate you. If you agree, then I am to bring you to one of our secret meeting places," Daniella elaborated further.

Seiras nodded, "Alright...I accept. When is this to happen?"

"Tomorrow around this time ought to work. I will let them know that you agreed. Also, please understand if a few of them will be armed. It's all just a precaution...standard procedure you know?" she said reassuringly.

"Of course...I understand," Seiras nodded, "I will meet you tomorrow then. Where would like to meet?"

"Near the lower engines on the subdeck. There aren't cameras there and the techpriests typically never patrol it," Daniella replied.

"I will see you there," the librarian replied before taking his leave.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

So I know not a lot happened in this chapter, but I had to split this and chapter 5 into two chapters because it got too big. Slaanesh has a way of making things like that happen you know? That being said, we saw some pretty weird shit this chapter.

Seiras' interaction with Atia was quite amusing to write. It's definitely ooc, but a story like this sort of has to be. Anyways, the next chapter will be the rite of initiation...prepare yourselves and make sure your commissar isn't around.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: The Cult of Slaanesh**

 **The following day, Subengine deck**

The next day, Seiras found his way towards the subengine during his nightly patrol. He was especially careful to avoid as many cameras as possible, and moved with remarkable stealth through the ship.

To his discomfort, the Astartes was not in his usual power armour and instead wore the only normal clothes he owned. It was mostly from a cargo uniform with desert camoflague colours that scout marines typically wore on Calderis. The only difference was it did not include the armoured parts. He felt strange not wearing armour, but was thankful that nobody noticed him out of it other than a few random armsmen.

He contemplated dozens of times whether or not he should go into the heretic meeting place like this, but considering what Daniella said, he knew it was the only way to make them trust him.

He already felt uneasy enough being on an Imperial Navy ship in the warp with no armour on. Now he had to go into a hive of heretics without armour and weapons too. Seiras had to keep reminding himself that he wasn't the one who was going to be doing the killing and that his job was luring them all together and uncovering their plans. In the worst case scenario, where they try to kill him, he could at least use his psyker powers. His main priority though was to find the heretic psyker who was nullifying everyone else's Psychic powers.

After about half an hour of casual walking, he finally reached the bottom engine room. Upon walking in, he noticed it was practically empty at the moment. Considering they were in the warp, he could understand why. That also explained why the heretics probably took to meeting here.

He heard footsteps as he waited around for a few minutes and eventually saw Daniella. She seemed extra excited to see him and was undoubtedly thrilled that he had no power armour on.

Seiras braced himself as she came over and hugged him. She radiated delight as she spoke softly, "You made it, good! Glad to see you in you in some regular clothes...you're surprisingly lean out of it."

"Am I?" Seiras replied as he kept his eyes on her. He could hear footsteps all around him which were no doubt people wanting a look at him or affix weapons on him in case he was trouble.

"Well, I always wondered how a space marine would look out of power armour. I saw you walking...you move so gracefully. It's really cool to see," she said excitedly.

Seiras simply nodded at her, "Well, I'm here, and I hopefully won't terrify your friends now."

"This is so exciting. Are you ready for the rite of initiation?" Daniella asked him with a grin.

"Sure...you said your mentor wanted to do it for me right?" Seiras feigned ignorance again. He was getting pretty good at it now.

' _Lead the way...I pray this won't be too heretical_ ,' Seiras thought as he kept an innocent, confused look on his face.

"Come with me...your initiation awaits," Daniella said happily.

Seiras followed her around some strange makeshift hiding places before coming upon what he could only describe as a hidden shrine room deep beneath the engine area. It was the very bottom of the ship and pretty well hidden. Seiras doubted he would have been able to find this even if he spent the last week scouring the ship for a heretic shrine. It reeked of perfumes, musty indulgence, and what Seiras could only imagine sin smelled like.

Sitting in the room praying at some type of foul altar, was what appeared to be a woman. Upon hearing them arrive, the woman turned around. She was very beautiful...almost ridiculously so, and was wearing the most revealing clothing Seiras had ever seen in his life. She looked more naked in her clothes than an actual nude person would be.

Her breasts, and womanhood were on full display with piercings around all of them. She wore thigh high boots, and high sleeve gloves with open hands. Over her navel was a Slaanesh symbol tattooed to her stomach. The rest of her "clothes" bore a striking resemblance to a naval officer's uniform...only minus the middle parts. On her back a prominent fur cloak went down to her legs. If there was any doubt that she was a Slaanesh cultist, the woman also had a necklace with the same symbol as the one Daniella wore.

As he examined her face, Seiras felt a slight shiver. She looked extremely familiar. It was only then that Seiras realized she was one of the ship's navigator that he knocked down the other day.

' _A navigator is the ringleader of this cult?! Why didn't that ever cross my mind?! I even ran into her and didn't think twice about it. Holy Terra...this is not good. What was her name again? Amelia Ferraci?'_ Seiras thought as he stared at the woman.

Her being a navigator perfectly explained why she was able to avoid any psychic detection as navigators were able to suppress the ability of warp detection in themselves and others. Besides, even if detected, she would not be suspected of anything as she was the Navis Primaris of the ship.

He found it strange that she wasn't on the bridge or near the Navigation chamber where most navigators practically lived while on a ship. He wasn't sure how many navigators were onboard, but it would be a bad thing if they had to kill her.

' _This complicates everything_ ,' Seiras thought. He couldn't help but stare at her as he tried to figure out what to do. She looked unsurprised to see him which was very troubling in his mind.

"This is my mentor...she is one of our leaders. Her name is-" Daniella tried to introduce the woman.

"Amelia Ferraci...I remember you," Seiras interrupted.

"And you're Seiras...the rude brute that knocked me over the other day," she countered.

Daniella seemed confused, "Wait...what? You two know each other?"

"Yes, Danny...Seiras and I met on the bridge the other day. He was running around a corner and sent me flying. You still owe me an apology for that by the way..." Amelia said as she walked closer.

"I didn't think someone like you would be involved in a cult..." was all Seiras could say.

"Yes, and I never expected a space marine to take an interest in it as well...though considering how much you seem to dislike the Inquisitor, I suppose it's not that much of a stretch to imagine," Amelia replied.

"I apologize for knocking you down the other day, Lady Amelia. I was just in a hurry to get away from Inquisitor Atia. She seems to think the Adepta Sororitas are up to something and wanted to question me about what happened with Commander Silvina," Seiras explained.

"Did she now? I imagine she must have heard about how you kissed the Sister of Battle?" Amelia asked.

"Thankfully not, but Atia did seem to think the Sisterhood was investigating me for heresy," Seiras replied.

Amelia couldn't help but laugh, "Ahaha. Now I get why you were so understanding of Danny. Still, I find it interesting that you were able to win over our precious little Daniella's affection. It's a pleasant surprise,"

"Yes, well hopefully you understand my intentions then," Seiras replied.

"Oh of course, I understand completely. From what little I've seen of Inquisitor Atia, she seems like a dreadful woman," the navigator said.

"The Inquisitor is mean bitch...I sure do hate the Inquisition," Daniella added.

"Do not worry, Seiras...I accept your apology," Amelia said approvingly as she eyed him up and down rubbing a hand over her breast.

Seiras was thankfully more or less immune to her sex appeal, but he could tell that a normal man would be highly aroused looking at this woman in his position. She was remarkably beautiful in his opinion.

"I must say though, I was cautious when I first heard about you from Daniella. You're Deathwatch and you are one of the Inquisitor's Astartes...forgive me, but I initially had my doubts about whether or not we could trust you," the navigator witch explained.

Seiras nodded, "I can certainly understand why. What made you believe me if you don't mind my asking?"

"It's no secret among a few of us that you were at odds with the Inquisitor. Atia certainly doesn't like you based on the rumors and firsthand accounts that I've heard from my servants. Also considering your chapter's history of heresy recently I can see why you think the way you do. When Daniella told us more about your feelings, I began to understand why you wanted a release," the woman paused briefly. Seiras took a moment to realize that she was making a sexual suggestion with her last comment.

"You feel unhappy and trapped...and desire something better out of life. You do not like repressing all of your emotions and following orders blindly. I've never seen a space marine express feelings like that before. You even kissed an Adepta Sororita out of dominant lust. Such things are common among followers of Slaanesh. What convinced me the most of your legitimacy however, was your acceptance of Daniella despite her showing you what she is. It was brave of her to do so...but it also shows a lot of trust on her part. I never would have imagined a Space marine showing empathy to a cultist like her," the chaos witch continued.

"Well...I figured there had to be some reason why so many of my brothers fell to chaos. They embraced their own desires instead of suffering endlessly in servitude. Daniella told me that Slaanesh could fill the emptiness I feel," Seiras replied.

He was very thankful that he was a space marine librarian in this situation as it prevented her from reading his mind outright or using any type of warp power on him. Unfortunately, he couldn't read hers either, but Seiras was now positive that this woman was the ringleader of heretics on the _Avenger of Terra_. Part of him contemplated whether he should just kill her and the rest of them in the engine room here and now, but something in his gut told him that he was better off finding out their plans and numbers first. Not only that, but he found himself strangely captivated by the navigator. Amelia truly carried herself like royalty, and despite the fact that she was a heretic, Seiras admired her in a strange way.

"Hmm...that he can. Slaanesh takes great pleasure in nurturing those feelings in his followers. Indulging someone like you would definitely please Slaanesh...you're very beautiful for a space marine. In a cult like ours, beauty and might such as yours would be held in the highest regard. Someone like you could even be a champion of the Prince of Pleasure if you so desired. You would be a true artist among the stars," the woman said in a ridiculously seductive way.

' _She seems like a different person here than when I encountered her on the bridge,'_ Seiras couldn't help but notice. Being in her presence now, he could detect a slight amount of warp corruption oozing out of her.

Amelia walked over to Seiras and ran her hand over his chest and stomach, "So hard...so strong. I'm truly and pleasantly suprised you actually came to us this way. You have a genuine interest in the Prince of Pleasure. It's just so...perfect,"

"Why is that?" Seiras asked.

"It's no secret that space marines hate people like us who don't always...blindly agree with the Imperium's laws. It brings me copious amounts of pleasure to know that not all Astartes are Emperor loving robots. You...are just a superhuman curious about being free from eternal suffering and duty right?" the woman asked as she lifted up his shirt with Psychic power and peeled it off of him.

Seiras had no idea how to react and gave her an uncertain look, "What are you doing?"

"Sorry, I wanted a better look at you," Amelia replied as she looked over his bare torso. She examined his large warrior physique and ran a hand over a few of the port plugs on his skin.

"You being a librarian makes your curiosity all the more delicious. Psykers are highly valued in the cults of chaos," Amelia noted as she softly carressed parts of his stomach.

Seiras maintained his bearing in a stalwart way, but could feel slight shivers go over his body from the woman's touch. Her hands were surprisingly warm and seemed to tingle against his flesh.

Daniella looked confused, "Seiras is a psyker?"

"Yes, my dear...I thought you knew that. Librarians are Space Marine Psykers," the navigator explained.

Danny blushed crimson as she turned and looked at Seiras, "I...I thought they were like historian specialists or something. Are you saying he could read my mind?!"

"I suppose he could if he wanted to," Amelia replied with a grin.

"S-Seiras...d-did you read my mind at all?" Daniella asked with a horrified and embarrassed face.

"I don't usually do things like that...reading people's minds is an Inquisitor thing to do. My Psyker powers are more combat based, and besides most people can tell when you're in their head...you would have known if I was doing it," Seiras lied.

The navigator chuckled, "It's alright, Danny...besides, we won't be sharing any secrets with each other for long. Seiras seems like he will fit in well with us."

"So your name is Amelia Ferraci and you're the main navigator for the ship right?" Seiras clarified.

"Yes, that is correct. As I mentioned the other day, I am a daughter of the great House Ferraci. I am also a chaos witch and a Pleasure Priestess of the Cult of Slaanesh. My loyal acolytes call me Princess Amelia when we're not in the company of outsiders," the dark haired beauty explained.

Seiras found himself staring again for a moment before speaking, "You certainly look like a princess."

' _Wait...what did I just say?! Damn it...stop staring at her, Seiras! She's just a heretic and a woman,_ ' Seiras thought to himself frustrated. Luckily his outer demeanor did not reflect his inner thoughts.

"Oh? You like looking at me like this? I didn't realize I was your type. It's alright, Seiras...I don't mind you staring. In fact I like it just as much as you do," she teased.

 _'How the hell would a Navigator have fallen to chaos like this and gone unnoticed? She must have been corrupted by the warp the last time this fleet fought the Emperor's Children eight years ago,'_ Seiras wondered as he stared at her.

"You can't take your eyes off me I see. Am I so beautiful that you can't avert your eyes in shame? Haha, oh Seiras...you're going to make me blush," Amelia cooed as a soft blush came upon her cheeks.

"Sorry, I'm just not used to seeing people dress like that," he replied unsure of how to word his response.

Amelia ran a hand over her bare breast, "Not used to seeing a sexy woman you mean?"

"No I'm not. So what's this about a rite of initiation? What do I have to do?" Seiras asked trying to change the subject and to avoid any more awkward staring. He was feeling a strange attraction to Amelia that he genuinely could not understand. Never in his time as a space marine had he felt attracted to a woman like this. He was convinced that it had something to do with her psyker powers, because she was not this enthralling the other day.

Amelia laughed as she ran a hand over his large muscled frame, "It varies from member to member. I like to see true indulgence to show praise and to please the Prince of Pleasure. Little Daniella here gave in to the fact that she is a whore and embraced it wholeheartedly indulging in every second of pleasure that she was initiated with. She was whipped, fucked, and then pampered like a spoiled little slut. She loved it...she feels pleasure in being used and wanted. Incredible pleasure in her moments of power that she feels when a man or woman releases their desire into her. It's beautiful depravity."

' _That sounds disgusting. I knew Daniella was a whore, but seriously? Great...it's one of these kinds of pleasure cults. Why am I not surprised? What in the Emperor's name am I going to have to do then?_ ' Seiras thought concerned. In truth he already suspected it was this type of pleasure cult given how promiscuous and forward Daniella had been. Even he knew that something was weird about a woman offering sex so freely.

"I don't feel sexual desire the way normal people do. I'm a space marine," Seiras said factually. He hoped that would be enough to deter any kind of sexual thing for him to be initiated with.

"Oh i'm aware of that. It's that hypno-indoctrination they do to Astartes. I know some Astartes don't have genitals, let me see if you do," Amelia said softly as she reached down and felt his crotch.

Her face lit up with a grin after feeling the presence of his manhood, "Oh...it looks like you're one of the ones that do. How fortunate."

"It doesn't work...like I said, I don't feel sexual attraction," Seiras stated hoping to deter this situation.

"That's what you think. Maybe you just haven't met the right girl yet. I'll bet I can help you see the light..." Amelia said as her hand began to glow a pinkish purple. Seiras had never seen a navigator use warp powers like this before and stood there uncertaintly as the woman began to carress him with her warp infused hands.

"Look into my eyes, Seiras..." the woman said seductively.

"What are you-" he asked but was silenced when she reached into his pants.

"For your initiation, you're going to do something truly indulgent and depraved. You're going to give in to your desires for me and let go. Let go of the indoctrination and mental blocks. Feel the warp enter your body...clearing away the things that sexually pacify you. Experience warmth as blood flows through your body...deeper...lower...harder," Amelia moaned.

Seiras' eyes lit up with horror as he felt something unusual. A warm surge of bloodflow filled his body and began to inflate and harden his manhood.

"What the- that's impossible!" he gasped as Amelia grasped it softly and started to stroke. He felt unfamiliar sensations overwhelm his logical mind as sexual desire filled him.

He looked at Amelia now with lustful eyes. She looked twice as desirable as before and he could not help himself from fully admiring her now.

"Oh...that's what I like to see. Even the Emperor's angels get hard for me. Oh how I love that look on your face, Seiras. Allow me to give you the greatest pleasure you'll ever experience. Your rite of initiation is to fuck me," she said in whispered breaths as she pulled down his cargo pants.

"Oooh, this will be fun. So big and hard..." Amelia moaned as she began to stroke his manhood with boths hands. She placed her mouth over the head and started sucking on it as well.

' _What is this?! How did she manage to give me an erection?!'_ Seiras gasped in pleasure as the navigator carressed and sucked him hungrily. Seiras had no way of knowing how long she did this, because he soon felt himself relaxing in the pleasure of the moment.

"Emperor this feels..." Seiras couldn't even finish his statement as Amelia pulled her mouth off smacking.

"Amazing doesn't it? It's going to get even better here soon," she interrupted with heavy breaths.

She stood up and pushed Seiras lightly, "Lay down...I'm aching for this."

Daniella had a flushed face and started to touch herself in weird ways as Amelia gently pushed Seiras.

"Princess Amelia...can I-" Daniella tried to cut in but was silenced.

"You stay there and watch, Danny...you can have a turn once the initiation is over," the Navigator said lustfully.

Seiras felt himself fall back onto a pile of furs and other soft fabrics. Amelia crawled on top of him, "Do you want it, Seiras? Do you want me? Tell me you want me. Tell me I'm beautiful. Tell me I'm the most beautiful woman you've ever seen!"

"You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen," Seiras admitted aloud. He could no longer resist this heretical woman's charms as he stared into her eyes.

 _'I'm a damn space marine! How is this happening to me? I can't resist her...even if I could, this is the only way to get them to trust me,_ ' Seiras thought as Amelia started to kiss him.

Daniella stared in full unfiltered envy of her mistress and mentor. She was completely jealous of how effectively Amelia seduced Seiras and could only watch as the woman basked in Seiras' desire.

' _Her eyes are so beautiful. It's like I'm staring into the warp...why can't I resist this? How can she be so captivating?'_ Seiras thought to himself as Amelia hovered her womanhood over his erection.

"Tell me you want me, Seiras. Tell me you love this!" she gasped in painful pleasure as she lowered herself onto him.

Seiras felt uncomfortable tightness around his erect member as a fiery warmth engulfed part of it. "Ughh!" he groaned lightly as it squeezed him.

"AHH! It's incredible...so tight. Oww it hurts...I can't even move!" she gasped as she grinded her hips back and forth for a bit.

The Blood Raven felt incredible pain and pleasure as Amelia aggressively started moving up and down.

"Oh! It's stretching me out! I love it!" Amelia screamed as she began to move up and down on it and grind. Seiras felt strong surges of pleasure as Amelia finally got a rhythm going.

"How does that feel, Seiras? You like that?" she gasped between breaths as she started to pick up her pace.

"Ughhh..." Seiras grunted as he couldn't really speak properly with these unusual new sensations overwhelming his senses. He could see a light pink hue of warp energy surrounding Amelia's body and his own now.

"That's right...you do! OOOH! So deep! MMMMM! Harder! Grab my tits! Make me scream!" she begged as she leaned over placing her hands on Seiras' stomach. He began to start thrusting into her as she did so which made her squeal and shake wildly. The Blood Raven then placed his hands over her chest and groped her while doing so.

At this point he felt almost possessed by the sensations of the moment and held nothing back. This went on for Emperor knows how long. To Seiras it felt like hours, but for all he knew it could have been minutes. An intense pressure kept building up in him the longer they continued. He felt himself slipping more and more into the moment.

"Oh yeah, I'm fucking a space marine! You're going to make me...UGHHHAH! Cumming! Seiras CUM IN ME!" Amelia shouted.

Seiras felt her vaginal walls squeezing and tremoring as its wet juices practically flooded out of her lubricating his manhood even more. The unbearable pressure of his erection finally released as her walls squeezed him uncontrollably. He felt himself convulsing and spasming beneath her as she rode out her orgasm.

"Yes that's it! OOOH! Right there...mmm," Amelia moaned pleasurably as the two finished their climaxes. Seiras felt the pressure of his manhood finally go down as Amelia fell over and collasped on his chest.

He was still inside of her, and could feel a strange sticky warmth all around. He finally regained his clarity after a moment and looked at the woman incredulously, ' _I just had sex with a heretic_. _Emperor forgive me...what the hell just happened?! Did I...enjoy that?'_

Seiras could barely believe how enjoyable his first sexual experience had been with the woman and thought for a moment, ' _No wonder everyone else is so obsessed with sex...that might have been the greatest thing i've ever felt_.'

The navigator kissed him for about a minute before slumping over to his side. Seiras felt his manhood finally pull out and saw strange fluids oozing out of her.

Amelia rolled onto her back and laughed, "Look what you did to me...it's unheard of, but I guess space marines can have sex. Praise Slaanesh for this beautiful depravity. The Prince of Pleasure blesses us..."

"I wasn't expecting this to happen..." was all Seiras could say as he was still recovering from his disbelief.

' _I...why did I lose control like that? It almost felt like I was being possessed_ ,' he thought full of concern.

"That was amazing...hahaha, and I got to be your first too," Amelia giggled.

 _'What do I do now?_ ' Seiras thought to himself.

"Princess Amelia...can I please make love to him now?!" Daniella begged desperately. She was practically naked by this point and had been masturbating to them having sex. Seiras had almost forgotten she was there until she spoke.

"Oh of course...we have ten hours until my shift. Invite whoever wants to _meet_ our newly initiated member," Amelia giggled wickedly as she reached down to feel her dripping vagina.

Seiras looked up confused, "There's more?"

"Oh we're not done with you yet...it's Daniella's turn now," Amelia laughed.

"I don't know if I can-" Seiras stopped talking when Amelia channeled pink chaotic warp energy over him again.

He felt his manhood reharden and desire immediately return again, only stronger this time.

' _What is this?! How is she doing this to me?! What kind of sick perverted power is this?'_ Seiras thought disturbed as the pink warp energy intensified his desire.

Daniella was already making her approach. She didn't even seem to want foreplay as she immediately straddled him.

"Now we can make love, Seiras," Daniella said eagerly.

' _This is the worst mission ever. Gabriel forgive me...I bring shame to our chapter_ ,' Seiras thought as his guilt began to grow as well.

"Can I go after Daniella?" Seiras heard another voice. He looked over to the room's entrance and noticed a congregation of onlookers.

"Of course. Fucking a space marine is a once in a lifetime opportunity...everyone come _introduce_ yourselves to Seiras, "Amelia replied.

' _What?! More of them? Don't tell me they all want to have sex with me...'_ Seiras thought as additional cultists came into the room. As Daniella began to have her way with him, some of the other cultists tried to massage him, feed him, rub his hair, and one even just spent the entire time licking his feet.

"Seiras! I love being your whore!" Daniella shouted lustfully.

' _Emperor, I swear to you that I will ensure the deaths of every last one of these cultists...'_ Seiras tried to justify the sensations to himself.

 **Avenger of Terra, Heretic Hideout, 9 hours later**

Seiras "slept" in the filthy heretic den completely filled with shame and disgust as a heap of cultists were all tangled around and on him. Daniella and some other women were on either side of him, and Amelia was on top.

They had all passed out one by one from drugs, sex, alcohol, or just plain weariness after the initiation ceremony. Seiras would be lying if he said it wasn't enjoyable in a sick, perverted, and wholly shameful way. That being said, he felt extreme guilt as he looked around at all of the depravity.

Many of the cult members present were female, but there were a few perverted males dressed as female and a variety of others passed out around him as well. The Blood Raven tried not to think about all of the unusual tabboos he committed earlier. He was thankful he couldn't fully enter R.E.M. sleep, because Emperor knows what would happen if he could actually fall asleep like a normal person around these freaks.

He took a closer look at some of the cultists and realized a lot of them were either ship crew or slaves. Daniella appeared to be the only guardsman, but judging by the nudity or semi-clothed appearances of most, he honestly couldn't tell if there were more.

The space marine looked around disbelievingly, ' _I can't believe I had to do this...I'll be glad when I can kill all of these heretics_. _If this doesn't convince them I can be trusted then I don't know what will_.'

Seiras felt a hand carress his face and looked to see Amelia staring at him happily, "You had the best initiation ever...I think everyone really enjoyed you. Welcome to the Cult of Slaanesh, my champion."

"What did you call me?" he asked shocked.

"My champion...you're just what the cult needs, Seiras. A perfect leader and protector for us," she said as she moved in to kiss him.

' _Damn it...why is she so beautiful?! Is this why the Emperor tried to supress our desire? So women like her couldn't distract and manipulate us?'_ Seiras mentally fumed as he made out with the heretical navigator.

After breaking the kiss for air, she stared at him for a moment, "What do you think? Want to stay with us and be our leader? I could be your queen...and we could conquer, fuck, and do whatever else we wanted. I could pilot the ship, and you could lead all of our followers."

"Well, I don't know how that's going to work. We have this battle to wage once we exit the warp, and after that i'll be assigned somewhere else...assuming I survive," Seiras replied.

 _'I don't deserve to survive after this...'_ he thought briefly.

His sense of duty was returning as he remembered the main reason why he endured an orgy with Slaaneshi Cultists. He had to unravel their plans and betray them all once they told him everything. He attempted to convince himself that whatever sick things they did to stimulate him were not enjoyable. It was completely inhuman, daemonic, and warp twisted chaos that decieved him into thinking he liked it. _'I have to purify myself and kill all of these foul whores.'_

"What if I told you that we wouldn't have to separate. In fact, we could join that warband of the Emperor's Children," she said suggestively.

"What do you know about that warband? I find it kind of odd that a Slaanesh cult is on a flagship for a fleet headed to fight them," Seiras noted.

She chuckled, "Oh...we're here for a reason. I have been informing their fleet about our movements for two weeks. They will be waiting for us when I guide the ship out of the warp. The admiral and the Inquisitor will have no idea what's coming."

"What do you mean?" Seiras asked.

She smiled wickedly, "The other Exterminatus fleet has no doubt been wiped out by now...me, some of my other pysker friends, and influential informants collaborated to misinform the Inquisition about the enemy's whereabouts. The chaos fleet never left Sub-Sector Hestia and awaited the Exterminatus fleet to arrive there so they could ambush and destroy them. They will have no doubt wiped them out by now and moved to intercept our fleet in Subsector Justicar. By the time Atia figures out the other fleet is gone, it'll be too late, and this one will be destroyed as well."

Seiras did his best to hide his concern as he gave a thoughtful expression, "This fleet is considerably large...the enemy fleet must be larger if they have the manpower and ships to wipe out the other Exterminatus fleet and still have time to intercept ours."

"Good observation, Seiras...the chaos fleet is three times larger than we've led the Inquisition and the Eccelisarchy to believe," Amelia bragged.

"You keep saying we. Who is all involved in this conspiracy?" Seiras asked.

Amelia grinned at his interest, "Oh...you are the curious aren't you? I have to say it's quite fortunate that you found us when you did. If you become our champion, then our mutiny and sabotage will be all the easier."

"How do you intend to sabotage the entire fleet?" Seiras wondered.

The navigator smiled wickedly, "Many of the slaves on this ship have been swayed to the will of Slaanesh. We have techpriests, gunners, and even bridge officers who are in on the mutiny."

"Didn't the Inquisition perform a purge on this fleet after the last time it encountered chaos? How could you have gotten so many through the cracks?" Seiras asked with a genuine curiosity.

"Reassignments, recruitment, and especially oversight from other psykers thanks to me in order to keep the faithful of Slaanesh hidden. I'm the only psyker cultist on this ship however...because only I can suppress the Inquisitor and her grey knights directly," Amelia explained.

Seiras nodded, "So what can I do to help?"

"MMMhmmm...oh I love how enthusiastic you are about it. Sex with me was so divine that you would even betray your own team and the Inquisitor? I must have really won you over hmm?" Amelia said with seductive, self-satisified moans.

"I can't say you're wrong," Seiras replied honestly. Amelia truly did seduce him and win over his desires for a bit. That being said, he had no intention of betraying the Imperium, even in spite of how she tricked him into enjoying this disgusting experience or finding her attractive.

"You are just infatuated with me aren't you? I'm so beautiful, loved, and special that even a Space Marine fell for me. It truly is a blessing to be this perfect," Amelia bragged with self-satisfaction.

"I'm sure it is," Seiras replied. He was not entirely sure what he was supposed to say to something like that. This Amelia woman was extremely narcissistic.

"Fuck me again, Seiras...tell me I'm beautiful. I can't get enough of you treating me like the princess that I am. I need more...more of you...I want your love too. You're going to be mine, Seiras. I'll be the only woman in the galaxy with a space marine lover," Amelia said in lust-consumed frenzy.

"I will, Princess Amelia, but we don't have much time left before you have to go take over for the other navigators. What is it that you all have planned, Who is involved, and what am I supposed to do?" Seiras asked as the woman began to grind against him.

"Aghhh...the-the Master Gunner, the techpriests on this deck, the astropaths on the flanking battleships, the Navigators on the _Litany of Fire_ , and the Captain and master gunner of the _Sword of Justice,_ and a lot more that I can't think of right now. Our plan is to have the Sword of Justice battleship fire on Atia's flagship during the battle. The Litany of Fire's main Navigators will then crash into it destroying its void shields. Our techpriests down here will overload the engines and destroy the gellar field generator effectively stranding them here. Then, the master gunner on this ship will fire on the other Battleships. By the time they know what's happening, the chaos fleet will break through and wipe out the Inquisitor's fleet. They'll capture the survivors and likely kill most...but the faithful such as us will be rewarded. What I need your help with is to stop the grey knights and your team from killing us. They're the only thing we're concerned about," Amelia explained the plan thoroughly as she began to stroke Seiras' cock again.

 _'That's all I need to know. Amelia seems distracted enough to have her guard down. I should send a psychic message to Jessenta to close in while she's preoccupied_ ,' Seiras thought to himself as Amelia lustfully prepared herself for another round of sex.

 _ **"Jessenta! This is Seiras, I found out their plans and main leaders. i'm in the bottom deck of the engine room. There's a hidden shrine behind the deck. Hurry and get here...and be stealthy if you can. Their leader is a Navigator,"**_ Seiras sent a Psychic projection of his voice into Jessenta's head.

He was fortunate that Amelia was distracted by her lust, as she did not seem to notice his telepathy. Although Seiras couldn't help but wonder if Amelia had precognition. Surely she would see them coming wouldn't she?

' _I need to overwhelm her psychic foresight with my own. This will take some subtle effort on my part_ ,' Seiras thought.

"Mmm, Seiras, fuck me one more time before I have to go back to work. I have a three day shift and I'm going to miss you," Amelia cooed as she straddled him again.

 _'I guess I have to keep her busy until Jessenta gets here...Emperor I hope she doesn't walk in on this,'_ Seiras thought.

Half an hour passed, and finally Amelia seemed to be done. She began to clean herself up and put on her regal clothes over her slutty attire. As she was cleaning herself up, Seiras took this time to get his clothes back on. They reeked of odors that he did not want to think about.

Serias had been subtly channeling a light amount of warp energy in the hopes it would block Amelia's foresight. He knew it wouldn't take long for her to realize something was coming for her.

Amelia stopped what she was doing and looked over at the entrance to the shrine, "Oh no..."

"What?" he asked already knowing why she was concerned.

The rest of the cultists were still passed out, and nobody was ready when the sound of the door being kicked in alarmed everyone.

Standing at the entrance to the shrine room was none other than Jessenta and no less than two dozen of her Sororitas. The womens' eyes were wide with disgust and hatred.

Amelia herself looked completely caught off guard as Jessenta came in and stabbed the first cultist she saw with a power sword. The Navigator gasped and looked around with disbelief, "H-how? How did you find us?! I didn't foresee this at all!"

"You can thank Seiras for that, you mutant witch!" Jessenta replied. Seiras saw many of the other cultists waking up now, but their slight movements caused the Adepta Sororitas to open fire with their bolters. Blood coated the room as they were mercilessly slaughtered.

"Don't burn the room sisters...I want Atia to see this foul pleasure den for herself once we're done killing these heretics!" Jessenta shouted fiercely as she ripped her blade through several more cultists.

"Seiras, help us!" Amelia begged as the man stood there looking around at the cultists all dying.

The man made eye contact with her and didn't budge at all as several Sororitas came up next to him and Jessenta. They all pointed their weapons at the navigator awaiting the command to fire.

One fired a warning shot when it looked like Amelia was about to use one of her powers, "Don't even try it witch!"

The cannoness commander held up her hand, "No...let Seiras kill her. He had to endure this foul place. He deserves pennance by killing her himself."

It was only then that Amelia fully realized that Seiras had betrayed her. The woman's eyes were filled with disbelief, "I had visions of you...but not of this. H-how?"

"You underestimated us, heretic. Why do you think I sent a librarian to root you out?" Jessenta interrupted hatefully.

"So this was all a plot..." Amelia said surprised as she looked at Seiras, "I can't believe you would actually commit heresy just to discover our plans. You're a hypocrite, Seiras!"

"You cultists are delusional fools. I hope you're ready to die you traitorous, mutant bitch!" Jessenta spat.

"You can't kill me...I'm the Navis Primaris. The main navigator for the ship. Kill me and you'll regret it," Amelia said fearfully as the Sororitas all got closer.

"Do you know who her conspirators are, Seiras?" Jessenta asked looking at the Space Marine.

The man nodded, "Most of them."

"Good enough for me then. We don't need a chaos witch alive on this ship. Here, brother...take my bolter and blow this whore's head off," Jessenta said darkly with a sadistic grin.

The librarian grabbed the bolter and stared Amelia down, "As you say, commander."

Amelia then smiled after realizing she was truly doomed, "At least I got to fuck you, Seiras...kill me then Space Marine. You will never be able to forget the pleasure I gave you. No woman will ever satisfy you the way I-"

Before she could finish her statement, Seiras fired Jessenta's bolter and emptied the entire magazine from the weapon into Amelia.

As he fired the bolter, Seiras angrily yelled at her, "Die you filthy heretic!"

After it was over, the Navigator slumped over full of holes and half vaporized from the bolter barrage. Seiras felt like he had regained a piece of his soul from killing her. He walked over to her shrine and picked up what looked like his purity seal that he had given to the cultists.

"Always faithful," Seiras spoke the words on it as he walked back over to Jessenta.

As he approached, another Sororita dragged a struggling woman into the room, "We had a runner over here...a female guardsman by the looks of it. I don't know if she was involved, but she's missing most of her clothes."

"P-please, I'm innocent! They just took me hostage! I love the Emperor, please don't kill me!" Daniella began to cry in terror as she pathetically looked up at Jessenta and Seiras.

"You honestly expect me to believe that, you stupid lying bitch? I fucking saw you stalking Seiras. I saw your purple eyeliner. You were merely just a puppet...a pawn to lead Seiras here and help us clean out this nest of filthy heretics. I guess you did help the Emperor in your own pathetic way," Jessenta said as she kicked the woman in the face.

Daniella flew to the ground spitting out blood. Tears were falling uncontrollably down her face as she looked around, "Emperor protect me! I don't deserve this!"

"You do deserve this! You're the worst kind of heretic! The one that thinks she's innocent. The only difference between heresy and treachery is ignorance, and you are an ignorant little victim!" Jessenta spat.

"Seiras, I didn't want this. I just wanted you to bring me back to the light like you did before," Daniella cried as she looked at the Blood Raven.

"Put this worthless bitch out of her misery, brother," another sister said full of disgust as she handed Seiras a flamer and took the empty bolter from him.

"Seiras, why did this have to happen!? You were supposed to save me...I didn't want to stay on Meridian! I didn't want to be a whore. I didn't want to betray the emperor...I didn't want to be used! I just wanted some happiness!" Daniella cried pathetically.

The librarian felt genuine pity for her as he looked into her eyes. Unlike the others, Daniella did have remorse, and he probably could have saved her had he really cared to. Instead he left her behind the first time and used her as bait, decieving her the second time. This poor woman was going to die at the hands of the one person who ever protected her from evil.

Seiras tried not to dwell on it as he fired the flamer and burned the woman alive. The sisters of battle seemed to relax upon seeing Seiras mercilessly kill her and all watched without pity as the woman screamed until she was nothing more than a charred corpse. Some of them had almost excited looking faces at seeing a person burn alive.

After it was over, Jessenta turned to face Seiras, "I had my doubts...but you came through, Seiras. Although, something is bothering me...did you actually have sex with that navigator?"

The man looked at the white haired sister and sighed, "I did...not by choice though. She was a priestess of Slaanesh, and used some strange type of sorcery on me."

Some of the other Sororitas looked a bit menacing, but calmed down when Jessenta spoke, "Say no more brother...you did what I ordered you to do. I was half-expecting something disgusting like this. None of us here will hold that against you. We will never speak of this to anyone else. That part will be left out of my report. I'll tell them instead that you assisted me by tracking them psychically and spied on their plans."

"You will? Why?" Seiras asked shocked.

The cannoness frowned, "You've already had your honour and purity stained enough...you don't need this to tarnish it further. I trust you fully now, Seiras. You will be a vital ally in our battle against the Emperor's Children. You've proven the Adepta Sororitas and the Ordo Hereticus can depend on you to stay loyal...we won't forget that, Blood Raven."

"Thank you Commander Jessenta," Seiras replied.

"Commander...I think it's probably a bad idea to report to the inquisitor right away with brother Seiras in this condition. He should definitely clean himself up if you intend to use that cover story," another Sororita stated. Seiras recognized her as the one that had the chain sword.

"You're right, Selana...and I would prefer if his brothers did not smell the filth on him either. We will take him to our quarters and have him shower. We should clean his clothes of that filth as well. The rest of you secure this area and gather every one of those pendants that you can," Jessenta explained.

"C'mon, brother," Selana gestured for Seiras to go with her. Jessenta walked next to him as they departed.

They quickly left the engine deck and made their way towards the Sororitas' quarters. During this time, Seiras couldn't help but stare at Selana. She was definitely another one of the better looking Sororitas. She had long cropped pitch black hair, and blue eyes. Her face appeared unscarred which was unusual for a higher ranking Sororita. Seiras guessed she was probably Jessenta's second in command.

"What are you looking at, brother?" Selana asked uncertainly as she noticed Seiras' gaze.

"I was just thinking that you are a pretty woman," Seiras said truthfully. In all honesty, that was the exact reason he was looking at her. For some reason she looked a lot better than he remembered. Unfortunately, he did not understand the consequences of mentioning a Sororita's appearance to her yet.

She immediately drew her bolter and pointed it at him as they walked, "What did you say?!"

"Calm down, Selana...take it as a compliment. Nobody is around to see," Jessenta interrupted as she moved the weapon down and got between them.

The dark haired sororita stared at Seiras dangeorusly, "I've never heard of a space marine calling a sister beautiful. Those heretics perverted his mind...now he probably wants to have sex with me too."

' _Is that why I was staring at her? I don't think I'm attracted to her...she's just distracting_ ,' Seiras thought as he examined Selana briefly.

"Don't worry, I would never have sex with you..." Seiras said reassuringly as he looked away.

Selana got a bit flustered, "Is that right? Even with cult perversion I'm still apparently undesirable? Well I would never let you...just so we're clear."

"Fine by me," Seiras said carelessly as they continued.

Selana went silent for a moment as she looked at Seiras, "So...Jessenta told us everything that happened. About how you two kissed. Are you attracted to Sororitas now, brother Seiras?"

"I'm not attracted to anything," Seiras said shaking his head.

"Keep it that way then, because we're not attracted to you," Selana replied.

' _Am I seriously having a conversation like this with Adepta Sororitas?'_ Seiras thought bewildered.

The walk back with the two sisters was thankfully met with no other ship crew or personnel. There was also a surprising lack of cameras as well. Seiras wasn't sure if it was by sheer luck or planning on Jessenta's part that this happened. Upon arriving at the Sororita's quarters, Jessenta led Seiras to what was presumably some type of hygiene area with a shower and everything one would want or need.

"Give Selana your clothes, brother...she will clean them for you and get rid of the smell," Jessenta ordered.

"What?! I will? I'm nobody's laundry maid," Selana protested.

"This was your idea, Selana..." Jessenta sighed.

She shook her head, "I'm not cleaning anyone's clothes like some housewife!"

"Then I'll do it and you can keep an eye on Seiras here," Jessenta replied with a slight grin.

The dark haired sister looked flustered, "Give me your clothes, brother..."

Seiras did as ordered and took off his clothing. He handed his clothes to Selana who seemed more than a little shy at being around him naked.

"You done staring, Selana? Go clean those," Jessenta snickered as the other sister began to leave.

"I wasn't staring...he's the one who was staring at me!" she said aggressively.

Seiras was ironically not even looking at her as he tried to figure out how the showers in the Sororitas' quarters worked. He finally got it going and stepped in.

As he was showering, Jessenta looked at Selana, "What is it?"

"Should we be concerned about this, Commander? I mean...we don't know how perverted those cultists made him. He did have sex with the navigator and Emperor knows who else back there," Selana said as she watched Seiras shower from the doorway.

"Why does that concern you? Are you afraid of him? Or is there another reason why your mind is in the gutter?" Jessenta asked slyly.

The other sister sneered as she shook her head and began to leave, "Pfft...yeah right. He's a Space Marine, and a damn weird one at that. He's not even attractive, and I'm not interested in that sort of depraved thing anyways. I just can't believe you made him do all those heretical things..."

"He came through for us...we can trust him," Jessenta said reassuringly as Selana left.

"I wouldn't want to be alone with him..." Selana said shaking her head.

Jessenta simply shook her head, "Well luckily you don't have to be...go get those clothes cleaned."

"Of course Commander," Selana said begrudgingly as she left.

After she left, Jessenta closed the door. Seiras casually glanced at the white haired Sororita as she walked over to where he was showering.

"Thanks for showing up quickly, commander...I'm glad this infiltration was quick and subtle. It could have been a lot worse. Although, your other sister there seems a bit concerned about what I had to do. Is she going to be a problem?" Seiras asked as he scrubbed filth off of his body.

"Don't mind, Selana...she's just shy around men she can't kill or emasculate...which isn't many. She probably likes you and thinks that you are attracted to her," Jessenta sighed.

"Didn't I just meet her? Why would she like me? I though sisters had iron wills and never cared for such things?" Seiras asked shaking his head.

The sister shrugged, "Well she was more than a little curious when I told her I kissed you to set up this plot. Your staring at her and calling her pretty might have made her nervous. Most Sororitas are celibate you know...so knowing there's a man like you around that can make her feel like a normal woman is probably something she isn't used to."

Seiras looked completely lost at her explanation, "Ummm...right. So what about you? Are you celibate?"

"Why do you want to know that?" Jessenta asked.

The Blood Raven shrugged, "Well you seem more understanding about this situation than I would expect from a Sororita. I thought all of you were celibate."

"I have only ever had sex with women...mostly other sisters and sometimes rich noblewomen. I've never met a man who I'd consider it with," She trailed off.

Seiras nodded, "I see...I didn't even know women could feel attraction to other women like that."

"Some feel that way more so than others. In my case, It's mostly just to sate my urges...sex with men would complicate things as I tend to expect different things from them. We can't have relationships and children and they would get in the way of our duty. Any man typically worth having would want a family, and I couldn't betray someone's hope by choosing my faith and duty over them. Only someone like me could ever work out. Which is typically why it's other militant sisters," she replied.

"So you choose to like women?" Seiras asked as he began to scrub the rest of the grime on his body off.

"Yes and no...I like both men and women, but I only have sex with women because it is easier for me," Jessenta sighed, "Unlike you space marines, we don't have our sex drives chemically and hypnotically repressed...or whatever they do to you. We sisters have to willfully resist temptation that comes between us and our faith to the Emperor."

The Blood Raven sighed, "I think I understand what you're talking about now, because I never really noticed how beautiful so many women were...especially you and that other sister. Having my sex drive turned back on made me feel different about everything."

"Different how?" Jessenta asked.

The man looked at her for a moment, "Well I mean...you just look different to me now. I can admire you in a way I couldn't before. It sounds stupid I know, but I finally understand a bit more about how normal people feel."

"Seiras...don't," Jessenta warned him.

"Don't what?" he asked genuinely confused.

"You know what you're doing! Don't tempt me..." she hissed.

The Space Marine gave her a curious look, "Tempt you with what?"

"You're butt naked in our shower having a conversation with me about sex and you're...hard. What do you think is going through my head right now?" Jessenta blushed looking away.

Seiras looked down confused, "What the...why am I-"

"I can't believe this. You're sexually attracted to me. Damn it, this is a problem." The white haired beauty stated as she looked at him again.

"I am?" Seiras said not really sure how to respond.

Jessenta looked like she was pacing around and trying to decide what to do about the situation. Finally she shook her head, "We might as well just get it over with...I don't want weird tension between us, and it's going to be awkward until we do it. Besides...nobody else is around."

Seiras watched her disbelievingly as she quickly began to strip off her power armour and clothes.

"What are you doing? Why are you taking your armour and clothes off?" Seiras asked. He had an idea why, but he did not want to be the one to say it aloud. He could hardly believe it was actually happening.

"To have sex...what else? If Selana walks in and sees you like that she's going to try and kill you. Besides...we've already kissed, and there's already secrets between us. I'll do it this one time...and we will never again speak of it. Understand?" Jessenta demanded.

"Wait...this is kind of sudden. What gave you the impression that we had to do this," Seiras said as the now naked Sororita got into the shower with him.

"It's your fault for getting aroused in front of me. That cult stuff did pervert you..." she said as she eyed him up and down.

 _'I'm not so sure I'm the perverted one here...aren't sisters supposed to be super vigilant and resistant to temptation?'_ Seiras thought disbelievingly..

"So how does it work?" she asked him.

"What sex? I don't know...you've done it more than I have apparently," Seiras replied.

"With women! I don't know what to do with...that," she said uncertainly as she grabbed his cock.

The Blood Raven shook his head, "Well I don't know either..."

"What did those cultist whores do?" she asked.

"Well...they sucked on it and pumped it with their hands and then rode it. Some of the others did weirder things that I would prefer never to speak of again..." Seiras trailed off shamefully.

The Sororita bent over and followed the advice. She started to lick and suck the head as she stroked the shaft. She did it for about a minute and looked up at him.

"Is this right?" she asked.

"Yes," Seiras nodded leaning his head back.

The longer it went on, the more comfortable they both seemed to be getting with it. Jessenta could feel herself getting wet from this carnal activity and finally stood up fully, "You think you can fit that thing inside of me? I'm technically a virgin you know..."

"I could try...I'm not entirely sure how it works yet," Seiras replied.

She laughed, "This isn't how I imagined my first time with a man."

"I mean if you don't want to do this, we don't have to. This seems wrong to me," Seiras trailed off.

"I'm already giving you a blowjob in the shower...why stop now? Just shut up and fuck me, Seiras...Emperor knows how badly this is going to hurt," she said.

Seiras picked Jessenta up by her legs and spread them as far as they could go.

"Be gentle...you could seriously hurt me if you're too rough," she said

"Okay..." he replied as he attempted to enter her. She grimaced in pain as he slowly pushed in. Luckily her hymen had long since deteriorated from her athletic lifestyle, but being it was her first time with a man, and a space marine at that, she was tighter than Seiras was expecting.

"S-Seiras stop...that hurts! You're going to tear something. Just let me do it slowly. Sit down," the woman said. Seiras pulled out and sat down as she instructed. The water was still hitting them both as she slowly lowered herself.

She took thorough time stretching herself out as she managed to go lower every couple tries. Finally she seemed to be comfortable with her position as she began to move faster. Seiras thought the other women were tight, but Jessenta's pussy squeezed him painfully hard as she forced herself to endure the experience.

Neither one of them felt good from the act for a while, but their pain was soon replaced with pleasure as their bodies finally adjusted. "Oh...Seiras this is amazing," Jessenta said as she began to ride him harder and faster.

"Unexpected more like...I can't believe this is actually happening. This feels like heresy...and fraternization for having sex with a Sororita on a mission," the Blood Raven replied.

"You're an Adeptus Astartes, and I'm an Adepta Sororita...how can two children of the Emperor be committing heresy when they're only bonding with each other? UHHH right there! Yeah! OOOH! This isn't wrong...we're both loyal and faithful to the Imperium. Besides...if it is wrong, it's your fault," Jessenta said between gasps and moans.

"UGh...my fault? How is this my fault? You're the one who suggested this and got naked with me," he replied.

"Then maybe next time you won't get an erection when talking to me. I'm doing this so Selana doesn't have to see that hard manhood of yours," she replied as she leaned closer to him picking up speed.

"What's she going to say if she walks in on this? Your logic is hardly valid." Seiras grunted.

"I told you not to tempt me Seiras...it's bad enough I kissed you, but now we're having sex? You should have been responsible and turned me down...now I know your mind has been perverted. OOOH! You're such a bad space marine. You're probably a heretic too! A perverted heretic!" she retorted between heavy breaths and soft moans as she bounced and grinded up and down.

"You're the perverted one...what kind of a Sororita orders a librarian to have an orgy with Slaaneshi cultists and then try to seduce him afterwards? You're not a proper sister," Seiras countered as Jessenta began to pick up her speed.

"Just shut up and kiss me, Seiras...don't ruin the moment," the Sororita replied blissfully.

Seiras pulled her face in to makeout as she continued to enjoy herself. She yelped in surprise when he started thrusting into her while doing so. He remembered doing this exact thing to Amelia.

"OH EMPEROR! Seiras, stop that, you're going to tear me apart...UGHHH! AHHHHH Right there! Right there! Yes! Yes! AHHH, fuck me like those heretic whores! Is this how you screwed that witch slut? No wonder she told you everything!" Jessenta moaned as she broke their makeout session to speak.

"Why does this feel so good?" he asked between grunted breaths as he felt the pressure building up in him again.

"Oh no, I...I'm going to explode! OOOOH! YEAH mmmm!" Jessenta practically squealed as she hit her climax.

She felt Seiras convulsing beneath her and started to scream, "AHHHHHHH!"

After both of them finished riding out their orgasms, Seiras and Jessenta looked in each other's eyes for a moment almost disbelievingly.

"Did I really just have sex with a Space Marine?" She asked staring at the man.

"Did I really just have sex with a Sister of Battle?" he countered.

She stared at him, "I can't believe you actually seduced me..."

"It feels like you're the one who did the seducing," Seiras replied. It was obvious to him that Jessenta was projecting the blame so that she didn't have to accept that she was responsible for the situation.

"Maybe...I don't know what came over me," Jessenta said distantly.

"Well luckily it was just a one time thing. I'll never speak of it to anyone, Commander Jessenta," Seiras replied.

"One time thing? I don't think so, Seiras. You just took my virginity. Now you're going to take responsibility for this and help me sate my urges," Jessenta said glaring at him.

The librarian shook his head, "Are you serious? I...we can't do that."

"Yes we can...after ruining my purity you don't have a choice," she replied.

Seiras didn't seem convinced, "You don't think there's anything wrong with this?"

"Of course it's wrong In the grand scheme of things. Something like this would be bad for both of us to do with a regular person. However, it's not as bad if it's between a Space Marine and a Sister. An Astartes and a Sororita can't corrupt each other's faith...and I don't have to restrain myself if I can just fuck you," She explained. All of a sudden she appeared less guilty about the situation.

Just then, the door to the bathroom opened, and none other than Selana returned. She walked over to the shower, "Commander, where are you? I cleaned brother Seiras' foul clothes. They should be...WHAT IS THIS?!"

Selana dropped the clothes she was carrying and instantly drew her bolter pointing it at the two of them, "So, your urges finally got the better of you and you decided to rape the commander?! Get ready to die, space marine!"

"Stop it, Selana! He didn't rape me, so put that down," Jessenta commanded as she and Seiras looked at the newcomer surprised.

"C-Commander?! D-did you seriously have sex with him? I leave for half an hour and you do this?! What would the Prioress say if she saw you in this state?! What would you say to her?" Selana gawked.

"Space Marines are technically related to the Emperor...so I would say it wasn't wrong," Jessenta replied.

Selana gawked at her and Seiras, "This is NOT okay! For the love of the Emperor just...make yourselves presentable!"

Jessenta got off of Seiras and stumbled slightly as she walked over to get a towel.

"Commander you're not walking normally...did he hurt you!?" Selana asked concerned.

"Oh yeah he hurt me alright...but i'll get used to it," she giggled in amusement as she handed Seiras two towels to dry off with.

Selana shook her head, "What?! Commander get a hold of yourself! This is unbecoming of a Sororita! You can't just...just...have sex with a space marine! How did this even happen?"

"Even I am still trying to figure that out," Seiras added shaking his head, "she got naked and got into the shower with me after I got hard. Said it was probably best if we got it over with so there wouldn't be awkward tension between us...whatever that means."

"Awkward tension? Commander you're attracted to him?!" Selana half-demanded.

The long white haired commander laughed, "Yeah I am...what of it?"

"What's wrong with you?! For someone who's experienced in resisting temptation, you certainly didn't even try to restrain yourself here...you sent me away on purpose didn't you?!" Selana demanded.

"Yeah I did. Would you have preferred to take my place?" Jessenta replied with a smug grin.

Seiras was genuinely surprised by Jessenta's current attitude. Having sex must have put her in a good mood, because this was the first time he had ever seen her laughing and smiling.

"What did you do to her?!" Selana gawked as she looked at Seiras disbelievingly.

The man shook his head, "I don't know...this is all new to me."

"B-brother...aren't there rules in the Codex Astartes about this kind of thing?! You...you can't just have sex with a Sororita! That's immoral depravity! You could get in serious trouble with the Inquisition for something like this!" Selana shouted.

"Maybe it is a bit indecent...but I enjoyed it. It's good to get rid of pent up desires before fighting daemons anyways. Perhaps you should get laid, Selana. I'm sure one of the sisters or Seiras here could help you," Jessenta said as she started putting her clothes and armour back on.

"Not in a million years! You should not have taken advantage of him after that experience he had to go through. You two having sex is only going to breed bad behavior," Selana sighed.

"Poor choice of words," Jessenta laughed.

The dark haired Sororita looked at Seiras flushed, "Take your clothes and get out of here. I think you've fucked enough women for one day wouldn't you say?"

"Thank you, Sister Selana," Seiras said as he took them and got dressed.

"Don't get any ideas about me, Seiras! Unlike the Commander here, I'm pure and I take my vows of faith seriously," Selana said strongly as she walked out of the bathroom.

Jessenta shook her head and sighed, "We probably shouldn't have done this...but since we already have, we might as well just go with it now. Let's go see the Inquisitor now that you're halfway presentable."

 **Atia's Quarters** _ **Avenger of Terra**_

As Seiras, Selana, and Jessenta approached the bridge, they came to Atia's quarters. Seiras had been dreading the trip the entire time as he vividly remembered his last experience with Atia. Two Stormtroopers were standing outside of her door and looked alarmed by the approaching visitors.

Before they could even say anything, Jessenta spoke, "We have business with Inquisitor Atia...regarding heretics."

"I'll call her," one of the Stormtroopers said as he contacted her through vox.

Several moments passed before the door to Atia's quarters opened, and the woman came out in sleeping attire which only consisted of a shirt and underwear. Her grogginess immediately dissipated when she saw Jessenta and Seiras both there.

"Seiras? Commander Silvina? What is it?" Atia asked seriously.

The Cannoness Commander handed her the Slaaneshi Cult necklaces that Amelia and Daniella had both worn, "There was a heretic nest onboard this ship. A Slaaneshi Cult. With Seiras' help we managed to track them down and wipe them out. My Sororitas are securing the area currently."

Atia's eyes went wide with shock, "What?! Are you sure?! I would have noticed something like that! My Grey Knights would have-"

"Their leader was one of the ship's Navigators...a woman by the name of Amelia Ferraci. She was also a chaos witch and had been actively suppressing psychic detection. I learned of her plans to sabotage the fleet and a bit more about the threat we're facing..." Seiras interjected.

"Seiras? You're telling me you two worked together and uprooted a heretic nest without my knowing? Nevermind the details...I expect them in a proper report later. Who is all involved?" Atia asked seriously.

"On this ship: the master gunner, the majority of the subengine techpriests, some of the slaves, the gunner crew, and the Navigator Amelia Ferraci who was the ringleader. On the _Sword of Justice_ , the Captain, master gunner, and the gunner crew. On the _Litany of Fire_ , the Navigators. We also have evidence to suggest that many of the astropaths and navigators were tainted from eight years ago and slipped through the cracks with the Inquisition," Seiras told her with perfect clarity.

Atia frowned, "That is bad...we can't exactly kill our navigators mid warp-travel. What did you learn of the enemy then? They were in league with the Emperor's Children I assume?"

"Yes they were," Seiras nodded, "We learned that the fleet is three times larger than what our intel has led us to believe, and that the other Exterimatus Fleet was wiped out. The enemy was apparently waiting for them, and they already know we're on the way to Sub-Sector Justicar," Seiras elaborated.

Atia looked over at Jessenta, "Is that the reason the Ecclesiarchy sent you?! How did you two uncover this plot? I need to see this nest for myself!"

"I asked Seiras to investigate some suspicious people with his psychic powers for signs of chaos corruption because I suspected they had a psyker for a leader. I imagine the Grey Knights could have done it just the same, but they are too noticeable and would frighten the heretics away. Seiras followed one of my leads to their hideout beneath the subengine room and overheard of their plans to sabotage the fleet. He called for me to come back him up and we wiped them all out. At least most of the ones that were there," Jessenta answered calmly.

The Inquisitor seemed to relax slightly, "I will go investigate it shortly. I...I am shocked that this slipped past my vigilance. You have my thanks for bringing this issue to light. I will contact all of the appropriate channels and have these known traitors wiped out. Anyone remotely suspicious will be interrogated. For now, we will have to have armed guards watching all of our Astropaths and navigators to ensure they do not do anything."

"Very well, Inquisitor...if you need any help in rooting out remaining heretics, we will assist you as necessary," Jessenta replied.

Atia looked at Seiras curiously, "Why are you wearing clothes, Seiras? I am surprised you're out of power armour despite there being heretics aboard."

"I had to be stealthy," the librarian replied, "Power armour is too noisy and noticeable."

"Commander I will meet you down in the subengine room shortly. Allow me a few minutes to speak with Seiras...alone," Atia said as she gestured for the Blood Raven to enter her room.

Seiras immediately felt a sense of dread wash over him getting invited back into Atia's Quarters.

Jessenta traded a confused look with the silent Selana over the matter, but the two left after the doors closed. As he walked inside, Atia gestured for Seiras to sit down at one of her nearby couches.

After sitting down, Seiras looked at the Inquisitor curiously. She briefly made eye contact and sighed, "I'm sure there's more to the story than Commander Bolter Bitch has told me. Would you like to tell me what actually happened? Off the record...I'm not going to hold it against you. What you did may very well have saved all of our lives."

"I had to infiltrate the cult. There was this guardsmen girl who claimed to know me from Meridian and said I saved her. Commander Jessenta believed she was a heretic and told me to play along with her until we uncovered them," Seiras told her the truth.

"So that's what the Commander wanted to talk to you about then? Well...you did uncover their purpose here at least. Although, you say you infiltrated the cult? Did you commit any heresy to earn their trust?" Atia asked seriously.

Seiras nodded with a straight face, "Yes..."

"I'm amazed you're so honest about it. Even more so because you just contradicted the cover story the commander gave for you. Nevertheless, I appreciate your honesty, Seiras...it's the only thing that assures me of your loyalty to the Inquisition. While normally I would detest such a dangeorus venture, it thankfully worked out in this instance. For all the things you do wrong, Seiras, at least I can count on you not lying to me. I will grant you amnesty for that reason alone."

The Blood Raven seemed shocked by her mercy in this situation. She seemed to notice his surprised reaction and scoffed, "What's with that look? You thought I was going to execute you or something? The Inquisition is extreme, I know, but even I'm not that blind. If it wasn't for your actions, we could have suffered a terrible fate in the battle to come. We may yet still, but at least we'll be more prepared now."

Seiras nodded and said nothing as he stared at the Inquisitor for a moment. Atia's appearance was something he never even gave a second thought to before. She had long black hair, hazel eyes, and olive coloured skin. Her face was aesthetically pleasing, but being a psyker, she also had her fair share of modified cybernetic attachments. She was very pretty in his opinion. Maybe not as much as Amelia or Jessenta, but definitely quite attractive in his eyes.

Atia noticed his staring and looked at him curiously, "What?"

"It's nothing, Inquisitor," he replied.

"It's clearly something...are you checking me out?" she asked with a serious expression as she looked down to notice she was in her sleeping attire.

"No," he stated simply.

"Oh I know what it is...you want your kiss for finding out why the sororitas are here. Come here, Seiras..." Atia said as she walked over towards him.

"A deal's a deal...pucker up," Atia said as she leaned over him on the couch.

Seiras could barely believe Atia was actually serious about doing it as she sat on his lap and grabbed his face.

She planted a juicy kiss on his lips as she put her hands behind his head. It was an uncomfortably long kiss, and it was wet.

After it was over she got off of him and sat next to the man on the couch, "You taste weird..."

"How so?" he asked.

"Like another woman..." was all she said in response as she glanced up at him.

He had no clue how to respond to her remark and simply stared at her.

She shook her head and laughed, "It was the Commander wasn't it? You weren't joking the other day were you? I guess that explains why she was willing to lie for you. I swear you must be blessed by the Emperor himself to seduce a Sister of Battle, haha."

"Sorry to change the subject, Inquisitor, but don't you have to deal with the heretic situation? You don't seem to be in a hurry," the man noted.

Atia put a hand over her eyes and sighed, "Yeah, I do need to deal with that. They're not going anywhere though, so I can spare a few minutes talking to you."

"Of course," Seiras replied as he sat there unsure of what to do now. He watched as Atia turned to face him with a curious expression.

"I've got a question for you, Seiras...if you could have anything in the galaxy that you wanted, what would it be?" Atia wondered.

Seiras thought long and hard on her question for a moment. It was certainly a bizarre concept he had never thought of before. Finally after an awkward silence, he answered, "The knowledge and power to defeat every enemy...the praise of the Emperor...and the truth about my Primarch."

"I knew it...most space marines don't want personal things like that for themselves. You do, however. You're dangerously close to being a heretic. Just remember, Seiras...small steps corrupt. Never let your vanity and desires outweigh your duty and faith lest you end up like the chaos space marines. I would hate to see that happen as I'm actually starting to like you now," Atia said softly as she got up and began to get dressed.

She bent over in front of Seiras as she went to pick up her boots, and much to his annoyance, Seiras couldn't help but look. Atia obviously did it on purpose to see if he would react. She seemed surprised by his response and simply turned to him with an amused look, "You curious about me, Seiras?"

"No...I am not, Inquisitor. I'll meet you down in the subengine with the Sororitas," Seiras said immediately standing up and heading for the door and hoping to get away before something terrible happened again.

"Of course...I'll meet you there," she replied as the Space Marine exited her quarters.

After he was gone, Atia walked over to a nearby Servo skull that typically recorded her room, and replayed the scene from moments earlier. She watched it curiously as she bent over and the Blood Raven turned to admire her ass. She focused on his expression which seemed more than a little curious.

' _He was definitely checking me out...I've never seen a space marine interested in women like that_. _Is he actually attracted to me sexually? This might actually be worth investigating whenever the cultists are put down.'_ she thought curiously as she paused the recording over his face.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

So...lemons for the lemon god! Don't hate me! Slaanesh made me do it! Ahem...anyways, we have an interesting assortment of circumstances happening now that may very well corrupt Seiras. How will he endure this curse of Slaanesh now that he's attracted to women?

There were some brutal betrayals and passionate sex this chapter. A Tzeentch-Slaanesh collaboration there for ya. As Pimp King Vect would say: "Why not?" Speaking of Pimp King Vect...you guys are in for some dark shit whenever I introduce Dark Eldar into this story.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Finding the Light**

 _ **Avenger of Terra**_ **, The next day, Mess Hall**

News of the heretic hive had been all the rage aboard the flagship over the past day. Without hesitation or mercy, the Inquisitor and her troops quickly murdered all suspected traitors and associated parties after seeing the scene of the crime for themselves. Seiras was almost surprised by how relentlessly brutal Atia had been ever since the ordeal. It seemed especially odd to him considering how merciful she was with the librarian himself.

Even despite recent events, she displayed a level of trust towards him and kept his secret. Unfortunately, the Grey Knights seemed to know some of what happened, and were not so lenient. They had been regularly watching him from afar for the past day now, and Seiras wasn't sure if it was by Atia's order or their own vigilance.

The Blood Raven sighed heavily as he carried a tray of food to the officer's table in the mess hall of the flagship. The room was mostly empty at the moment thankfully. He sat down by himself and stared at his meal deep in thought. He wasn't sure why he decided to come here again, but used it as a good excuse to get alone time from his brother space marines. Seiras examined his food thoroughly. It was some type of grain and meat mixture with odd assortments of fruits and even a cookie.

The librarian took a bite of the pastry as he recollected the various reactions his brother space marines had towards recent events. All of them were equally disturbed and furious by the news of heresy aboard the ship, but luckily they were not informed of his infiltration in the ordeal.

He was concerned that Viggo would smell something different about him, and was extra careful in covering his scent upon returning to his brothers yesterday. Seiras felt relieved that Atia kept his secret as well, because Emperor knows what his brothers would think of his recent mishaps. He could only imagine what Gregorius would have said about him committing heresy to lure out and kill heretics. Thankfully, they were none the wiser and Seiras was back in his power armour again with a force sword at his side.

He ate his meal in relative silence as he thought about the initiation from the other day, _'I feel sick...all of those disgusting things I did. I can't get them out of my head. Amelia, Daniella...even Jessenta. Damn it, what is this feeling?!'_

He was drawn from his thoughts when a strange vibration caught his attention. A warm and psychic echo filled his head as he stopped eating, _**"You seem troubled."**_

At first the librarian ignored the voice as he attempted to return to eating. The spirit stone around his waist shined brightly as the voice filled Seiras' mind with more clarity, _**"Monkeigh, I would speak with you."**_

The voice was in an Eldar dialect, but Seiras had long since memorized and discerned the meanings of the psychic emanations from its telepathic frequencies. He chose to ignore its voices as he typically did these days. Seiras would never admit it to anyone, but the stone did try to talk to him on its own sometimes.

 _ **"Seiras...listen to me, it's important!"**_ the stone complained. In the decades since he had acquired the spirit stone, Seiras had never once heard it refer to him by name.

He took a moment before acknowledging it psychically, _"What, Eldar?"_

 _ **"What happened to you? Ever since your encounter with that cultist girl, you've been acting strangely. Have you been tainted by Chaos?"**_ it asked with a suspicious tone.

 _"Those cultists are all dead. I made sure of that. I am not tainted or sympathetic to the ruinous powers and those who worship them. I remain always faithful to the Emperor."_ Seiras responded calmly.

 _ **"I can sense ripples in your mind. You are unstable and distracted. What did they make you do? The monkeigh girl spoke of an initiation. Did you fulfill their requirements?"**_ the stone asked curiously. It had a very unnoticeable sliver of sincerity in its tone. Due to the fact that he wasn't wearing his power armour down in the heretic hideout, the eldar in the stone had no real idea what actually happened because it usually stayed with the librarian's armour. Seiras was confused about why the Eldar seemed to even care, but he decided to answer anyways.

 _"Some initiation ceremony that involved sexual depravity...among other things I would prefer to never speak of again,"_ Seiras responded bluntly and shamefully.

 _ **"Disgusting...I am thankful to have missed watching that. The idea of you mating is repulsive to imagine."**_ the stone said in a disapproving voice.

 _"Why do you even care? We haven't spoken in years..."_ Seiras asked as he finished off his cookie.

 _ **"You haven't spoken...I have had plenty of wisdom that you have foolishly ignored for years. Why did you bother learning our language if you never intended to speak to an Eldar with it?"**_ the Eldar sassed.

Seiras shrugged, _"I have nothing to say to you, alien."_

 _ **"Well, let me make this clear. I don't care about you or your well being in the slightest. However, given the nature of recent events, I believe I understand why Saim-Hann came after you. It wasn't just for me as I originally suspected. It was to assassinate you...although I'm sure you already knew that. I imagine you're doomed to fall to Chaos and bring terrible fates to many. Obviously, that's concerning to me since you are very powerful and you keep me around,"**_ the eldar explained.

 _"That's the closest thing to a compliment I have ever heard from an alien. I already knew that they came to kill me. Do you actually have anything relevant to say?"_ Seiras replied callously.

 _ **"I don't think you're as stupid as most Monkeigh. Surely you've realized that this change in you is dangerous. I know you will likely refuse this, but I highly recommend that you seek out the Aeldari on your own. If you approach them properly and respectfully, I doubt they'll kill you. They might know something about your future. If you allow them to help you, then they might not have to kill you,"**_ the stone continued.

 _"That sounds like a terrible idea. What possible reason would I have to talk to aliens that tried to kill me countless times in the past?!"_ the Blood Raven asked angrily.

The stone was silent for a moment before replying, _**"You speak to me, do you not? Whether you will admit it is irrelevant, but you and I share a decent understanding and a mutual tolerance of one another. Aeldari and Humanity share a common foe...if you ask them to help you, they will. In fact they might even appreciate you showing wisdom instead of being a foolish brute tampering with things you do not understand."**_

 _"Keep your suggestions to yourself from now on! I don't even know you alien. You give me information about Eldar technology and language...that's it. You can't lie about language and technology when I can test it. But trust? That's easily exploitable. Your kind are notorious for deception, which is why I made it a point to learn your stupid language. I did as much so we could NEVER again suffer at the hands of the treacherous xenos filth from Biel-Tan or Ulthwe! You're not going to outsmart me you knife-eared xenos!"_ The man elaborated.

 _ **"You are a fool if you believe you can outsmart the Eldar. We're always ten steps ahead of your Imperium's pathetic psykers. Not even a librarian such as you could match even the lowliest seer among the Aeldari. You're hardly as cunning or intelligent as you think you are,"**_ the Eldar spoke condescendingly.

Seiras immediatly grabbed the stone chained to his waist and pulled it into his grip. He began to squeeze the stone as hard as he and yelled psychically at it, _"I've heard enough from you. Keeping you around has lost its benefits. Say hello to Slaanesh for me after I shatter your spirit stone!"_

The stone recieved a visible crack from the force he was exerting, which caused the Eldar within it to immediately voice concern, _**"Wait! Do not kill me, Seiras! You're making a mistake! You have no idea how valuable I am to you alive!"**_

 _"By all means enlighten me you coward!"_ he replied darkly as his grip tightened even harder.

 _ **"My name is Prince Kalyra. I was an Autarch of Aldmorian...the crashed Craftworld on Typhon Primaris,"**_ the Eldar replied.

Seiras gawked in disbelief as his grip finally loosened, _"You're an Autarch?! That's highly doubtful...an Autarch would never have told me all of the things you did. You're just trying to save your worthless life. In the face of death, you Eldar will stoop to any low to save your own souls from Slaanesh."_

 _ **"I am an important figure among my people even in this state. My word still carries weight to the Aeldari. You could trade me to a Craftworld for knowledge or amnesty. They would honour such an exchange if you initated it. I can help you, but if you kill me then you lose that option forever."**_ Kalyra concluded.

 _"Hmm...fine, you get to live a little longer then. Do not think this means I'll tolerate your arrogance, alien. If I hear one more bad comment from you, then I'll send you straight to Slaanesh. You'll be a useful bargaining tool if necessary,"_ Seiras replied.

 _ **"As you say, Seiras."**_ Kalyra said curtly before finally ceasing to speak. Seiras let go of the spirit stone shortly afterward and let it fall back down on the chain around his waist.

He barely had a moment to continue eating before the sound of heavy footsteps caught his attention from behind.

"Brother Seiras, there you are! Mind if I join you?" a familiar voice brought Seiras out of his deep thinking. The Blood Raven looked up with surprise to see none other than Nogemo coming around the table sitting down across from him.

The Blackshield had a serious but friendly expression on his face which was both inviting and concerned.

"What are you doing here, brother?" Seiras asked the Blackshield curiously.

"I came to check on you. You have the look of shame and regret in your eyes. Did you see something disturbing recently on one of your walks?" Nogemo asked slyly.

Seiras was silent for a moment, ' _Does he know about my involvement in rooting out the cult?'_

"What are you saying? It sounds like you're under the assumption that there is something wrong with me." the Blood Raven asked carefully.

"No need to be evasive with me, Seiras. I know you personally rooted out those heretics. I will say no more on the matter. If anyone would understand your situation, believe me...I do," Nogemo said calmly.

Seiras relaxed a bit as his Blackshield brother took a few bites out of his meal. The bald man shook his head and sighed after a moment, "I saw you sneaking around without your armour the other day. Convenient for it to occur right before this heretic purge. The others thought you were just pacing around the ship like you usually do. I have to say it was quite innovative and cunning on your part. Your infiltration is something I would never expect from a librarian."

"My actions were dishonourable, but necessary," Seiras said quietly. He was still recovering from the shock that Nogemo figured him out.

"Sometimes we have to do the wrong thing for the right reasons," Nogemo noted.

"What about you Nogemo? Did you do the wrong thing for the right reason? Is that how you became a Blackshield?" Seiras wondered.

The bald man frowned, "I've done countless things that I am not proud of. I prefer not to dwell on them."

"What chapter were you from, Nogemo? I know we're not supposed to ask, but I genuinely want to know." Seiras asked.

"Sometimes, Seiras, ignorance is bliss. Believe me when I tell you that you do not want to know everything about everyone around you," Nogemo replied.

"That's where you're wrong, Nogemo. I want to know about everyone and everything that is relevant to me or my goals. I'll never trust you fully until I know exactly who you were and why you turned your back on the Emperor," Seiras replied bluntly.

"I never turned my back on the Emperor...only on the hypocrisy of the Imperium. That's why I'm here. Forgive me brother, but I cannot tell you who I was before joining Deathwatch. Knowledge of my past would not benefit you at all." Nogemo responded.

Seiras stared at him doubtfully, "Knowledge is power...that is true in every sense of the word. Having knowledge over something gives one power over it. You're afraid of me knowing what you were...aren't you? You don't trust me either I take it? You're hiding something from us."

"Am I Afraid? No. Do I trust you? As a battle brother I do, but as an ambitious Astartes I do not. Not telling you is for your own good as well as mine, Seiras. You're a very interesting scholar and Psyker...but your thirst for knowledge and power is not much different than the ancient sorcerers within the Thousand Sons. Not all secrets are meant to be unraveled. Do yourself a favour and don't end up like them lest you fall to Chaos," Nogemo replied.

"Don't compare me to chaos traitors! What would you know about them anyways?" Seiras retorted somewhat aggressively.

Nogemo gave Seiras a blank look and did not say anything in response.

Upon asking that question, a bit of clarity began to fill the librarian's mind. He stared at Nogemo for a moment before speaking, "You're a lot larger than the rest of us and I know you're older than you let on. The way you speak about the Great Crusade and the way you speak gothic...it makes me think you have a connection an original legion."

The Blackshield seemed slightly alarmed by Seiras' intuition, but quickly recollected his composure and cocked his head, "What are you implying brother?"

"You're different than all other loyal Astartes I've ever encountered. You are a lot larger than a normal Space Marine too...were you created from first generation gene-seed? I've noticed a lot of the marines from the Chaos Traitor Legions are larger than modern day space marines...and they have a lot of first generation geneseed," Seiras pointed out.

Nogemo looked at Seiras slightly surprised, "That is a rather interesting detail for you to pick up, but how does my size mean anything in that regard? Plenty of Astartes are close to my height. I'm hardly special, Seiras."

"You're 260 centimeters tall in your power armour. That's very large even by Astartes standards. You're taller than even Decimus and Viggo which is remarkable considering they're the largest Astartes I've fought beside. Decimus is 256 centimeters tall and Viggo is 251...but that's in their terminator armour. I'm 240 and I'm larger than an average Astartes in my power armour. The only space marines I've seen that come close to your size in regular power armour are the Alpha Legion Marines. If I had to guess they were all close to your height on average. They were bigger than my fellow Blood Ravens and me, but similar in size to you. I know you're not a former Chaos Marine because you're untainted by the warp...and I don't know of any loyal or traitor chapter that has qualities like yours. It leads me to only one conclusion...you're from the Alpha Legion." Serias deduced as he focused a hard stare on Nogemo.

The blackshield was caught off guard from Seiras' revelation as his eyes went wide for a moment. A long silence passed for a moment before Nogemo finally spoke, "You truly believe that?"

"Unless you have another explanation for why you're so large and stealthy, that's what I believe you are. Am I wrong?" Seiras replied calmly.

"No, you're not. I actually am from the Alpha Legion. I didn't expect anyone to ever figure that out," Nogemo admitted.

Seiras tilted his head confused, "I'm surprised you would admit it."

"Why bother lying about it since you already know? There's a reason I didn't want you or anyone else to know about my former allegiance. It's because the Alpha Legion is notorious for infiltrating the Imperium," Nogemo replied.

"I wonder what the others would think if they knew..." Seiras trailed off as he stared at the bald man.

Nogemo narrowed his gaze, "I am not your enemy brother...this is not something that the others should know. It would destroy our team cohesion. The others would never trust me again."

"But you expect me to keep this a secret? How do I know you're not an infiltrator? Give me the real reason for why you're here and I'll keep it to myself," Seiras threatened.

Nogemo frowned, "I am here because I am a disgraced angel. I failed humanity and I failed the Emperor. The Alpha Legion has ultimately abandoned what it set out to be, and I chose to spend the remainder of my life atoning for the things I've done. That's the honest truth, Seiras."

"If you're truly repentant about it, then just admit what you are to our brothers. Telling them will show that you trust them and that you have no intention of betraying us. They would be mad at first, but in time they would understand. Just like how Viggo and Decimus like me even though they don't like other psykers," Seiras suggested.

Nogemo looked at Seiras deeply, "Perhaps you should tell them about your experience with the Cult of Slaanesh then and about how you betrayed people in such a sinister way. I imagine they would not be as understanding as you would like. Why else would you withold that information? If they are to know about what I've done, then it is only fair that they know about what you've done as well."

Seiras' eyes widened, "Are you threatening me?"

"No, Seiras, I am trying to make you see this from my point of view. Others would never understand why we are the way we are and why we did the things we did. Some secrets should remain secret. You are ashamed of the things you've done...just as I am ashamed of my past. Please respect my wish to forget the past and bury it brother. I will never speak of your secrets if you never speak of mine."

"Fine, I will keep it to myself. But know this, _brother_...if you ever betray us I WILL personally kill you in the most horrible way you can imagine. I've suffered too many traitors in my life to tolerate subterfuge from another Astartes," Seiras threatened.

"I promise that I will continue to have your back. Your mistrust is understandable...I would expect no less from a librarian. Enjoy the rest of your meal, my brother. I hope this does not ruin our kinship. I rather like you, Seiras," Nogemo replied as he stood up.

"Farewell Nogemo," Seiras said distantly as the Blackshield walked away.

Seiras stared down at the table even more troubled than before, ' _He's an Alpha Legion marine...I had my suspicions, but for him to admit it so honestly to me implies that perhaps he isn't here to betray us? How in the name of the Emperor did he find out about all of those things I did? He's definitely Alpha Legion...nobody else is that stealthy or cunning. I should keep a closer eye on him from here on out.'_

Several minutes passed as Seiras ate the rest of his meal. He was actually starting to like eating normal food again.

"Hey, Space Marine, can I talk to you?" Seiras heard someone ask from behind.

He glanced back and saw an Imperial Guardsman standing there. It was Daniella's friend from the other day much to his surprise. She seemed very depressed and clearly troubled by something.

It did not take a genius to figure out that the woman was concerned over the fate of her friend. "Sure...sit down if you want," Seiras gestured for the woman to sit next to him.

She seemed surprised by his gesture at first but slowly sat next to the large Astartes. Seiras glanced over at her and spoke first, "Is this about your friend, Daniella?"

"Y-yes...how did you know that? Nobody will tell us what happened...only that she was a heretic and that she was killed by the Sororitas. I know it's presumptuous of me to ask, but can you please tell me what happened to her? Surely you've heard something? Danny would never betray the Imperium. She loved the Emperor. She loved space marines too. I just can't accept the idea of her being a traitor," the guardsman said nearly in tears.

Seiras took this time to examine the woman more closely. She had blonde hair neatly pulled into a bun, blue eyes, and a pale complexion. Her eyes looked puffy as if she had been crying a lot recently. The woman was currently in her full flak armour and had a lasrifle slung over her back. She did not look remarkably special in any way, but she was a nice looking woman in Seiras' opinion.

"I don't really know what to tell you other than Daniella was conspiring with cultists and the Sororitas killed her," Seiras said as he made eye contact with the woman.

He felt a terrible and sickening feeling in his gut for lying to the woman's face. The image of him burning Daniella alive with a flamer kept playing over and over in his head as he stared blankly at the woman.

"I am really sorry about those rude questions I asked the other day. Danny got really mad at me for upsetting you. She really liked you. At first I thought it was just some kind of schoolgirl crush since she loves space marines so much. I was amazed when she told me how she knew you. Danny said that you rescued her when she was a girl on her home planet of Meridian. She called you her guardian angel. It was almost poetic the way she described you," the female guardsman said sadly.

Seiras nodded, "I did rescue her as a child...unfortunately I wasn't fast enough to save her family from being eaten by tyrannids."

"It's just impossible for me to believe someone like her would be a heretic. I just wish I could have helped her." the guardsman said as tears streamed down her face.

The Blood Raven looked remorseful as he basked in his own guilt, "Me too..."

The woman quickly collected herself as she tried to wipe away her tears and maintain her dignity, "Look at me crying to you about this. I'm sorry for bothering you again lord space marine. I know it's not something you would understand from a stupid little girl like me. I should go."

"Wait," the librarian said as she tried to stand up. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to sit back down.

She looked at the Blood Raven confused and slightly alarmed, "What?"

"I do understand how you feel. I've had brothers and friends that I've known for a long time betray me and the Imperium. It hurts more than anything else in this galaxy to be betrayed by those you trust," Seiras explained.

His insides were literally burning with shame and guilt as he thought about how he killed his brothers during the betrayal of Kyras, and about how he hypocritically betrayed Daniella in an evil way when he could have potentially saved her from the cult. Betrayal was such an evil thing.

The female guardsman noticed the pained and despairing look on Seiras' face and immediately tried to hug him. He was drawn from his guilty reflection as the woman embraced him tightly. The few people in the Mess Hall looked over with complete confusion, and had no idea what was going on. They all stared with shock as Seiras allowed to the woman to hug him.

The librarian couldn't describe it, but he felt somewhat better from the woman's action. Just having someone, even an insignificant guardsman, reaching out and empathizing with him was a strange feeling.

"Thanks," the woman said softly as she let go.

"For what?" Seiras asked confused.

She smiled, "For telling me that. I guess space marines are human after all. I should get back to duty. May the Emperor protect you my lord."

"You can call me Seiras if you want," the Blood Raven spoke as the woman took her leave.

"I'm Gisela Goldmane. It was nice talking to you Lord Seiras," she said before departing. After she left, Seiras decided it was time for him to leave as well.

He passed by the few inhabitants in the mostly empty mess hall and saw them staring at him strangely. Most of their faces looked unrecognizable compared to the ones he saw from the other day. He could tell that they were genuinely curious about his talk with the guardsman, but none of them had the courage to approach him as the Blood Raven left the room.

As he walked outside and moved down the corridors in reflective silence, Seiras passed by several Adepta Sororitas. They were all staring at him intensely as he passed by.

He briefly made eye contact and could see a few of them looked familiar. He did not know their names, but they looked like Jessenta's personal escort from the other day. A few of them smiled at him as he stared at them. One even addressed him, "Something you need, brother Seiras?"

' _Are they smiling at me? Since when do Sisters of Battle smile?'_ Seiras wondered.

"No..." Seiras replied after a brief silence before walking past them. He could feel their stares bore into him from behind as he departed. Ever since his experience with Jessenta, the Sororitas had been unusually friendly towards him. In his opinion it was slightly creepy.

Seiras would often catch them staring at him whenever he was around them. It was difficult to discern what type of expressions they had, but his best guess was that they were a mixture of interest, respect, and curiosity.

The Blood Raven passed several more before running into none other than Selana, who was leading a pack of four. She stopped in her tracks upon seeing him and spoke seriously, "What are you doing wandering around alone right now, brother?! Don't tell me you're looking for Commander Jessenta."

"Selana?" Seiras said her name uncertainly.

"Don't address me so casually! We are NOT friends. Just because Jessenta has gone all googley eyed over you does not mean that the rest of us have!" Selana said heatedly.

Seiras looked over the four sisters with her who all had varying reactions on the matter. One spoke her mind, "So this is the space marine that the Commander is infatuated with?"

' _Rumours spread way too fast around here...don't tell me that they all know about what happened between me and Jessenta. If they know then it won't be long before the Grey Knights and Atia herself know about it. I should have known having sex with her was a bad idea. Damn it!'_ Seiras thought to himself concerned.

Selana nodded, "Yeah that's him...he's the one I was telling you about. This is Seiras the Impure."

 _'Seiras the Impure?! Did this woman actually give me a title like that?!_ ' Seiras thought annoyed.

"What exactly have you told them?" the Blood Raven asked carefully.

"That you seduced the Commander with sorcery and must be protected by the Emperor himself to have gotten away with the infiltration you did. Did you seduce the Inquisitor too in order to get out of trouble? Why did she invite you into her room? I expect answers from you." Selana spoke seriously.

"She simply wanted to ask me some questions about you Sororitas and my involvement in helping to destroy the heretic hideout aboard the ship," Seiras replied blankly.

Selana narrowed her gaze, "Is that right? For the love of the Emperor you better not have said anything unnecessary to her."

"Nothing about the acts involved," Seiras clarified in a somewhat vague way.

The second in command Sororita huffed at him, "Has your insidious desire fully tainted you yet?"

"Not at all, sister. Emperor be praised, I have had no desires since that day," Seiras replied calmly.

"He did have sex with Commander Jessenta though. Is that even allowed, Selana?" one of the Sororitas perked up with a doubtful expression.

"Of course it's not! None of us should be having sex on a mission...especially Astartes and Sororitas," Selana protested.

"Keep your voice down...it won't be a secret much longer if you go around saying it out loud for people to hear," Seiras said as he looked around. He was thankful to see nobody else in range of their conversation. Seiras was especially relieved that there was no camera in this hallway either.

"I didn't realize Space Marines had sex with women. That is something I'm curious to hear about if you wouldn't mind telling me brother," one of the sisters said in a strange but curious way.

' _This nightmare won't end will it? Damn you Jessenta...it's all your fault I have to deal with this!'_ Seiras thought to himself angrily.

"They don't and they shouldn't...he was perverted by those cultists. He needs to be supervised so it doesn't happen again. That or put out of his misery," Selana said shaking her head.

"Well if it comes to that, hopefully you can supervise me, Selana. At least I know you won't try to seduce me like Jessenta did. I have nothing to worry about if you're around," Seiras said plainly.

Selana gave him a hard glare, "I distinctly recall you saying you found me attractive. Mind yourself, brother! I will shoot you if you even think about me in such an impure way!"

"Selana, I thought you said he seduced her. He's saying that Commander Jessenta came on to him? What's the real story here?" one of the sisters asked suspiciously.

"The commander came on to you? That's impossible. He must have used some psyker trick to charm her. Probably daemon magic," Another said aggressively.

"I don't know what happened, but I can assure you that it won't happen again," Seiras replied.

"Yeah...we'll see about that won't we, Seiras. You're giving me a real creepy vibe today," Selana said with a sneer.

Seiras wasn't sure exactly what her phrase was supposed to mean, but he gave her a careless look in return.

"Hey, Seiras, want to have sex with me? I won't turn you down if you're interested," one of the sisters randomly asked as Seiras began to walk away. She had a suggestive grin on her face.

Both Seiras and Selana gave the woman incredulous looks as their heads jerked towards her. Some of the other sisters looked shocked by her request as well.

"Absolutely not!" Selana shouted.

"Sister have you lost your mind!" the skeptical one spat.

"And you think I'm the perverted one...you sisters should really get out of your monastaries more often. For the record, this was her idea, not mine," Seiras said shaking his head.

He quickly made his departure before having to answer the sororita's question. As the librarian left, the woman looked disappointed, "So that's a no?"

Selana quickly slapped the woman across the face, "Go and prostrate yourself at an altar for even thinking that!"

"But the Commander did it and she's assured us that he's loyal. He's also pretty good looking for an Astartes. You didn't mention that part Selana," the woman said distantly.

"Sister, did he invade your mind with his psychic powers to make you like him?" another asked concerned.

She shook her head, "What? No, of course not. I'm not blind and neither are any of you. You can admit that he's attractive for an Astartes. Plus if it was heretical then Commander Jessenta would never have done it. She would never commit heresy, so I don't see a problem with me asking him too."

"You do have a point. I mean if he could seduce someone like the Commander, then he's got to be an ideal type of man," one of the sisters agreed.

"She's right, what more can you ask for in a man? He's an Angel of death...a killing machine descended from the glorious Emperor himself. I was actually there when he burned that heretic girl alive with Selana's flamer. It was hot," another remarked.

Selana simply stared at them disbelievingly, "Go repent now sisters! Your lust is shameful! Just because Commander Jessenta fucked him does not mean that it's okay for you to do so as well."

"If he asks me, I'm not saying no," one of the sisters chuckled before walking away with two others.

The skeptical one remained behind with Selana and shook her head, "What sorcery is this? He's got them acting like school girls."

"I don't know..." was all Selana could say as she shook her head displeased.

' _The prioress WILL be hearing about this, Jessenta...now other sisters are eyeing him up too! What ever happened to faith and restraint?'_ Selana thought in annoyance.

 ** _Avenger of Terra_ , Crew Deck **

As Seiras wandered around the ship for a bit, he passed patrolling crew members which was a common occurence during warp travel. What surprised him however is when he saw one of the Grey Knights blocking his way forward.

' _Since when do Grey Knights walk in sight of regular personnel? Now that I think about it, there's no way he's gone unnoticed by the regular crew the past few days. I guess the Inquisition doesn't care if people see them since we're about to go fight a chaos fleet?'_ Seiras couldn't help but wonder as he examined him.

The Grey Knight was fully covered in terminator armour minus his helmet. His head was mostly shaved and he had faded brown hair on the top. Other than the man's grey eyes, there wasn't much to distinguish him from any other Astartes' facially. He wasn't sure which one it was specifically as Seiras had never seen any of them without their helmets before, but the massive grey knight was holding a fancy Nemesis Force Halberd which led him to assume it was Captain Arius.

He stomped towards Seiras upon noticing the Blood Raven and addressed him, "I would speak with you, librarian."

"What do you need, Captain Arius?" the Blood Raven asked calmly.

The Grey Knight seemed rather surprised that Seiras knew it was him, but said nothing on the matter.

"Inquisitor Atia told me to find you. We must go at once," Arius explained.

"Let's not keep her waiting then," Seiras nodded as he walked next to the Grey Knight on the way to Atia's quarters.

As they passed patrolling crew members and Imperial Guardsmen, Seiras glanced over at the Grey Knight and broke the silence, "Do you have any idea what this is about?"

"Yes...it involves a serious matter. We should not delay," Arius replied.

"A serious matter involving me?" Seiras asked.

"Involving all of the ship's Psykers. There was an incident on the bridge. It's currently under control, but Atia wanted all psykers there just in case," Arius replied vaguely.

The Blood Raven frowned and changed the subject as they hurried along, "I see your grey knights watching me a lot lately. Did the Inquisitor order you to keep an eye on me?"

"It hasn't been them...just me for the most part. I have been watching you ever since you helped the Sororitas uncover the hidden traitors aboard the ship. Inquisitor Atia has had a complete change of heart in regards to you. She has nothing but good things to say about your initiative ever since it happened, but seemed concerned for your well being. She asked me to keep an eye on you and I personally wanted to get an idea of what kind of Astartes you are for myself," Arius elaborated.

"I see...and what have you discovered?" Seiras wondered.

"That you are very good at influencing other people. I am surprised you do not hold a higher position of leadership. I see how your Kill Team brothers look to you. It must be difficult to get such different chapters to like you as a librarian. I have seen many librarians not even liked by their own chapters, let alone others. You have remarkable charisma. As a fellow psyker, I must say that I find that admirable," Arius said as he looked over at Seiras

"I have a question if you dont mind me asking...why are you grey knights walking around in sight of common military personnel? Isn't your existence supposed to be a big secret even to Astartes? As far as I'm aware, my chapter is one of the few allowed to actually know about you." Seiras asked.

"The fleet will be mind wiped after the battle...your Kill Team and the Sisters will not be. This fleet was specifically chosen by the Inquisitor because it has battled chaos multiple times before. The senior officers were allowed to keep their memories...although we should have been more vigilant in checking the Astropaths and the Navigators. I understand the ringleader of the heretics was the main Navigator for this ship...Amelia Feracci," Arius replied.

"Yes, it's good she's dead. I am glad the Sisters were able to wipe out that heretic den," Seiras said with a nod.

"I don't know how you found it when we could not, but I know that Blood Ravens are renowned for this kind of thing. You're very much like us in many ways. You might not be one of us in name, but in deed and purpose you are our brother psyker," Arius said approvingly.

Seiras was blown away by the unusual compliment he was getting from the Grey Knight Captain. He had always held a bit of resentment against Grey Knights and found it bizarre that they would compare him to themselves.

"I'm surprised the grey knights do not hate me for what happened with my former chapter master. He was a librarian that turned into a daemon prince. Most would assume I'm doomed for the same fate," Seiras trailed off.

"The Grey Knights have always liked your chapter, Blood Raven. That is why you're allowed to know about us. Despite what happened with Azariah Kyras, I am glad that librarians like you survived the purge of your chapter's traitors. I understand Gabriel Angelos has been named your new Chapter Master? He's a good man. I have actually had the pleasure of fighting beside him once. Few are as honourable and loyal to the Emperor as he is," Arius stated proudly.

"Gabriel is a great man...I wish I was half the Astartes he is. I want to make him and my brothers proud by my service here," Seiras said as he thought about his battle brothers.

His mind wandered off as he looked at the inner part of his armoured forearm. There it had the names of many of his brother inscribed on it. Almost a third of them were slashed out however. Specifically the names: Kyras, Avitus, Gordian, Isador, and several other of his younger librarian brothers were all crossed out.

A wave of melancholy washed over the librarian as he thought about his brothers. He was drawn from his thoughts as Arius spoke again, "Are those the names of your brothers?"

Seiras nodded, "Yes...all of the ones I was closest to. All of the ones I learned the most from and fought the most with."

"The slashed out ones are traitors I take it? Why slash them out? Why not simply remake these inscriptions?" Arius asked as the two picked up their pace.

The Blood Raven didn't even bother answering the question as Arius briefly looked over the names.

After a moment of silence, Seiras finally answered, "They're still my brothers. Seeing their names on my armour is a reminder to me that I was not much different than them. It is a reminder that my faith is the only difference between us."

Arius was silent for about a moment before responding, "I understand."

"We're almost to the Inquisitor's Quarters," Seiras changed the subject as he and the Grey Knight came up to the bridge elevator.

"We should meet her on the bridge," Arius said seriously.

' _I wonder why she wants all of the ship's psykers there_ ,' Seiras wondered as he and Arius approached the bridge.

 ** _Avenger of Terra_ , The Bridge **

As Seiras and Arius entered the bridge, they immediately made their way to Atia and the other three Grey Knights. Much to their complete shock, all of the other Navigators were on the ground dead.

"Ah, you found him...about time," Atia said as she saw Arius and Seiras approach.

"What's this all about, Inquisitor?!" Seiras asked immediately as he examined the dead psykers.

She took a deep breath before explaining, "The reason why I've called you all here is because all of our navigators are dead. The gellar field had a malfunction in the Navigation Chamber. Every navigator that attempted to salvage the situation was possessed and came back to the bridge attacking everyone shortly after entering. The Grey Knights were forced to put them down. We're currently without a navigator drifting in the warp."

"What?!" Seiras gawked as he looked over the dead navigators on the ship's bridge who looked noticeably tainted by the warp. A trail of blood followed their bodies all the way up the Navigation Chamber door which was currently closed.

Seiras looked at Arius disbelievingly, "If I knew this was that urgent I would have ran here!"

"I didn't realize they were all dead! When did those two die?" Arius said concerned.

Atia shook her head, "Shortly before you arrived actually or I would have sent you a psychic message. One by one, all of them got overwhelmed when they tried to take over. And the ship's most experienced navigator was a heretic who is also dead! So essentially we're screwed!"

Another one of the grey knights moved in as he spoke up, "If we continue to drift like this, we could very well see damage to our entire Gellar field and daemonic infiltration aboard the ship. If the warp starts affecting the rest of the crew then we're in trouble. Since we're the ship's psykers, we must come up with a solution quickly."

"Can't we just follow the other ships?" Admiral Hightower cut in full of concern. He and the fleet commissar were both present. Seiras was amazed the bridge officers weren't panicking and figured it was likely due to the Commissar's calm and foreboding presence. They definitely looked shaken up though and understandably so.

Atia shook her head, "Of course not...someone would have to look through the raw warp in that chamber to guide us. None of us have the ability to do that effectively...especially for another week straight! So essentially we're going to to end up Emperor knows where away from the fleet...assuming our Gellar field does not collapse before the warp spits us out!"

"What do you propose we do then, Inquisitor Atia?" Captain Arius asked seriously.

"I don't know what to do...that's why I asked for all of the ship's psykers. We need to figure something out and fast!" Atia said urgently.

Seiras looked up at the sealed Navigation Chamber door and immediately started walking towards it. Everyone turned towards him incredulously as he approached it.

"Seiras, what are you doing?!" Atia practically demanded.

"Open the Navigation Chamber...I'll pilot the ship," he said as he finally reached the sealed room.

One of the nearby officers immediately did as the librarian requested opening the chamber for Seiras to enter.

"Seiras, don't you dare go in there alone!" Atia commanded as the Blood Raven stepped into the chamber.

"I'm not going alone. I assumed you all were coming with me. There's no time to stand around and discuss this. We have to get the ship back on course!" Seiras shouted.

"Grey Knights go with him," Atia said after a brief moment.

Without hesitation, Arius and the other three Grey Knights followed Seiras into the Navigation chamber.

The librarian pressed the button to seal the door closed behind them. Atia stared at them seriously, "Are you sure you can pilot this ship?"

"Of course I can. See you in a week, Inquisitor," Seiras replied as the door fully sealed.

 **Navigation Chamber**

After sealing the Navigation Chamber behind them, Seiras and the Grey Knights went up a set of stairs that wrapped back around and found himself in a viewport above the bridge. The chamber viewport was the only non-covered window during warp travel, and for good reason too.

Seiras looked out the window and saw bizarre, impossibly strange things everywhere in sight. He quickly shielded his mind and closed his eyes as he began to focus his psyker senses. Thankfully his psychic hood was on currently as it helped him tune out the wild warp surges that flashed over his mindscape.

They Grey Knights all dispersed around the room and slaughtered the many warp entities that were taking shape. Seiras opened his eyes again upon entering the chamber fully and saw a throne like seat of some kind with ship controls and a helmet like visor with cables coming out of it. He approached it while the Grey Knights were fighting off warp creatures. To the best of his ability he adjusted it and strapped himself into the navigator's chair.

Thankfully, most navigators were very tall and proportionally lanky, which made it possible for his oversized self to barely fit into everything. Seiras saw a large galaxy map grid to his side and display of the ship and its gellar fields in relation to it on the other. From what it looked like the Gellar Field was extremely weak around the Navigation Chamber for some reason. Out of the main window he could see the warp itself.

He focused as hard as he could on comparing his side map with the trajectory set and tried to align it to where it looked like he was going in the right direciton. Unfortunately, he had no reference point to where he was going as he glanced over at the galaxy map and grimaced.

With as much of his psychic will as he could muster, Seiras peered out into the deep vastness of the immaterium. It was a horrendous nightmare filled hellscape of disturbing images. It was only then that he realized something terrible...he couldn't see the Astronomicon

"Damn it! How am I supposed to know what direction I'm going? Where's the Astronomicon?!" he asked himself frustrated.

 _"You can't see it? Keep looking, Seiras! There's only so long we can hold off the raw warp!"_ one of the grey knights spoke psychically to him.

 _"It looks like we flew through a brewing warp storm. I cannot see the Astronomicon either,"_ Arius said after pausing briefly.

 _"I'll find it! Just hold these things off!"_ Seiras replied psychically.

An evil and disturbingly familar voice filled the navigation chamber as Seiras blindly piloted the ship, _"Having trouble, Seiras?"_

The librarian felt what must have been fear for the first time since he was a teenager as he immediately recognized whose voice it was, _"Amelia?!"_

 _"Oh...my beloved Seiras could never forget my enchanting voice could he?"_ the voice giggled in a wicked warp tainted way.

Seiras immediately regretted acknowleding the voice as it was now echoing whispers all around him. He refocused his attention back on navigating as he tried to tune out the voice. Obviously, it was the warp projecting daemonic images from his mind, and he did not want to breathe any more life into them than he already had.

The Blood Raven attempted to peer back into the warp and saw many twisted faces taking impossible shapes as they crackled with raw warp energy. They took horrific forms as he saw them fly around the ship.

He could see tentacles covered in mouths and eyes moving in strange flowing ways that defied all physics and even sane imagination. There was no pattern to this abhorrent realm...it was pure chaos.

With his full psychic might and his Astartes willpower, Seiras forced his gaze past the disturbingly chaotic scenery and could see a very faint light shimmering to his right. He could feel the warp reacting to his psychic powers as it changed shape immediately around his emotions.

"That was it! Where did it go?!" Seiras said aloud as he tried to relocate the Astronomicon.

As he continued to peer into the warp, many voices began to speak to him all at once and in strange haunting warp whispers. Above them all, one stood out the most, and that was the voice of Amelia again.

 _"You look like you need help, Seiras. I would be more than happy to help you my love!"_ Amelia's voice sounded with more clarity. He could hear her voice whisper dozens of more things at once which was beginning to drive him crazy.

He focused as much as he could on finding the astronomicon and refused to acknowledge her or think about the the voice as it would only empower whatever was creating it.

 _"You betrayed me!"_

 _"We would have been royalty!"_

 _"Tell me again that I'm the most beautiful woman you've ever seen!"_

 _"You know why I'm here, Seiras? Because you miss me...because you desire me still. Because you wish I was here to help you pilot this ship. Well luckily for you, I am. Just let me in!"_ Amelia's voice whispered in his head.

 _"More Daemons incoming! Something is flying through the Gellar Field!"_ Arius shouted psychically.

Just then a figured took shape right outside of the window and flew towards Seiras. He was disturbed to see it actually pass through the window and enter the Navigation Chamber next to him.

The display to his right showed the front of the gellar field flashing wildly for a moment indicating that more things were entering. Seiras' eyes went wide when none other than Amelia was in front of him. He couldn't help but stare at her, ' _Impossible...she can't be here. She's dead!'_

 _"I know how to navigate the warp, and I managed to find you. I will always find you...because you're mine! MINE!"_ she said in a tainted daemonic way.

"Begone daemon!" Seiras yelled as he tried to fry it with warp lightning. Unfortunately his attack missed her, but it did hit a few other warp creatures nearby.

Laughter could be heard from all around him as many more figures appeared as well.

Seiras could barely react before he found _Amelia_ sitting on his lap petting his head, _"Let me help you, Seiras...if you don't everyone will die. Is that what you want? More deaths on your watch?"_

He immediately felt a pair of lips against his own as Amelia or whatever was pretending to be her was aggressively kissing him.

 _"This isn't real! Get off of me, daemon!"_ Seiras shouted as he blasted everything back with raw psychic might. His eyes widened when the saw the fake Amelia turn into a daemonette.

"Our kiss was real," the daemonette spoke aloud as she attempted to approach him again.

Many other minor warp entities were also shaping into daemons as well. They did not last long thankfully as the Grey Knights quickly tore them apart. Arius immediately moved in and slaughtered the daemonette without mercy giving Seiras the ability to focus back on the warp.

 _"The Gellar field is down in front of the ship!"_ one of the Grey Knights announced psychically.

 _"Out there! A big surge of warp energy is coming! Pool your psychic might together brothers! Hold it back!"_ Arius commanded.

The four Grey Knights and the librarian all focused on a joint psychic shield that blocked the massive surge of raw warp from flooding the Navigation Chamber and touching the front of the ship. Their shield held off a subsequent wave before the gellar field began to flicker back on.

"The Gellar Field is coming back up but it won't make it if we take another hit from a warp cloud like that! Emperor, protect us..." Seiras spoke aloud as they all forced the psychic shield against incoming warp cloud. Just then a very bright light blinded everything in his vision and Seiras heard another voice. This one drowned out all of the whispers and was strong, authoritative, and in his opinion trustworthy.

"Focus on the light of Terra. Don't use your eyes. Don't see the warp...see the path and you will find your way through the storm," the strong voice told him. It was warm and comforting to hear and somehow gave the Blood Raven the help he needed. For some reason Seiras swore he could hear an angelic choir sing in whispered echoes with the strong voice.

Seiras immediately had an epiphany upon hearing the statement and began to think about Terra and the golden light of the Astronomicon. The warp always reflected what was on one's mind and if he thought of Terra, he could see the Astronomicon's light. He calmed his psychic peering and receded his power as he simply tried to follow his mind's instinctual intuition.

Finally, Seiras could see the light of the Astronomicon. He looked between his map, the ship angle, and the light itself before finally triangulating the proper way to go. Seiras focused less on what the outside of the ship looked like and more on how the Astronomicon's light aligned with the ship's direction on his map.

He turned back on course and began to follow the correct path. The gellar field was finally back up after he made it through the large warpcloud. The five psykers eased up slightly as the ship was no longer in immediate danger of breaking apart.

"I found it! We're stable!" Seiras spoke out loud to the Grey Knights. They seemed relieved upon hearing it and all sheathed their weapons as the Gellar field returned to normal.

"Good work brothers. How far off course are we, Seiras?" Arius asked curiously.

"About a week out still if this map is correct. I can pilot the ship until then if nothing else happens," the librarian replied.

"We need to ensure your safety so that the ship arrives safely then," the Grey Knight Captain replied.

"Only one of you needs to stay. The others should go inform Atia that we're back on course," Seiras replied.

"You three go. I will remain with Seiras. Make sure that no daemons made it onto this ship while the Gellar field was temporarily down," Arius dismissed his team. They all nodded before departing back to the bridge.

"Fly true brother. I will watch over the chamber until we arrive," Arius spoke aloud calmly.

"Did you see that light, Captain Arius? Or hear that voice?" Seiras asked curiously.

"Yes. The Emperor protects," Arius replied simply.

"Indeed he does," Seiras nodded as he slowly began to shut down parts of his brain. He practically stopped thinking about anything else other than lining up the Astronomicon's light with his intended course.

This continued for Emperor knows how long. To Seiras it felt like he had been doing it for a month as his mind practically went on autopilot and stopped thinking altogether. After what felt like an eternity, he finally saw something in the warp that was real...another ship.

In a trance like state, Seiras simply began to follow it as he remained focused on the Astronomicon. He difted so deep into his mind that he actually felt like he was asleep.

 **One Week Later**

Seiras awoke from his half-sleep state by a loud boom and very unusual flash of light. He snapped back to his full senses and realized that the ship had finally come out of warp space. The librarian looked around incredulously, ' _Did we make it?!'_

He was thankful to see that the _Avenger of Terra_ was intact and was now surrounded by many other Imperial ships in real space. From his window he could see the coverings on all of the fleet's windows opening up as they were finally out of warp space and could safely look outside.

Amazingly enough, the majority of the fleet appeared to be relatively close to the border of the system and came out more or less together.

"We have arrived. Excellent work, brother Seiras," Arius spoke approvingly as he walked over towards the window and looked outside.

' _Praise the Emperor...was that his voice I heard in the warp? It couldn't have been...could it? It came to me when I asked for his help...did the Emperor really speak to me?'_ Seiras wondered to himself.

He shook his head in disbelief, ' _I can't believe it. Did I imagine it? The Emperor saved us...he saved me. Navigators are a blessing...I will never question why they get warp corrupted ever again.'_

Seiras got out of his head as he finally stood up from the navigator seat. He unhooked everything on himself and walked over next to Arius.

The Grey Knight seemed surprised as he spoke solemnly, "I was not expecting this..."

"Expecting what?" Seiras asked as he took a closer look into the void horizon.

His eyes went wide when he saw what was further away in the distance. It was a colossal chaos fleet full of battleships, barges, cruisers, and escort vessels beyond counting. As Amelia had told him, the fleet was way larger than they were expecting. That wasn't the disturbing part unfortunately.

At the front and center of the fleet, Seiras saw something enormous. The Enemy flagship was a Gloriana Class Battleship.

"Is that a Gloriana Battleship?" Seiras asked disbelievingly.

Arius turned towards him seriously, "We must return to the bridge at once!"

Seiras immediately rushed down from the Navigation Chamber and opened the door to the bridge followed closely by the Grey Knight captain.

Everyone on the bridge was staring out the window, but jerked around upon hearing him enter.

Atia looked like she hadn't been sleeping much as her eyes were bloodshot with bags under them. Seiras wasn't surprised to see his fellow Kill Team brothers all there as well.

"Are you alright, Seiras? We heard you and the Grey Knights had to navigate the ship." Kallius asked as he approached the librarian first.

"I am, but we can talk about this later. Right now we have a bigger problem. Look!" Seiras pointed out the window towards the enemy fleet.

At the front of it was something that had everyone on the bridge except the space marines and Grey Knights petrified...it was a Gloriana Class Battleship. The massive 20 kilometer ship was both beautiful and grotesque in its appearance. It was covered in tainted warp filth and looked completely daemonic.

The Inquisitor gawked at it, "Is that...a Gloriana Class Battleship?! That's impossible..."

"I thought they were all destroyed during the Great Crusade or lost..." the Admiral added with utter fear and disbelief.

"If that's a Gloriana Flagship leading a warband of Emperor's Children marines, then it can only be one ship...The _Pride of the Emperor_. That's the traitor Primarch Fulgrim's Flagship," Atia said unable to restrain her fear.

The space marines looked at the magnanimous ship which was now covered in daemon corruption. It was beautiful in a way despite how twisted it had become.

"A traitor Primarch? Do you think he's on that ship?" Gregorius wondered aloud.

"Madame Inquisitor...we cannot fight one of those ships with a fleet this size. We're equipped to handle battleships and an escort fleet...not one of those monstrosities. Damn those heretic infiltrators! They told them we were coming! This fleet was waiting right here for us on the edge of the system!" the admiral said fearfully.

"We were counting on intercepting them here though...if they pass this system then we could see the fall of the entire sector or worse!" another bridge officer said strongly.

"None of the heretics we interrogated said anything about a Gloriana battleship!" Atia said frustrated as she pounded her fist on the nearest display.

"Inquisitor Atia...what do we do now?" Admiral Hightower asked concerned.

"We have no choice but to fight them here...perhaps there is hope that the Dark Angels Fleet will arrive to aid us. Send out the distress calls at once. Have our astropaths send a message to Terra while I send out a vox broadcast to anyone nearby," Atia said.

Doing as commanded, several bridge officers left to retrieve the surviving astropaths, while others patched a distress signal and broadcasted it through an open vox channel.

Atia began to speak in it urgently, "Attention, to any Imperial Fleet or Space Marines nearby, this is Inquisitor Atia. We are engaging a chaos fleet of the Emperor's Children. Be warned the _Pride of the Emperor_ is at the helm of their fleet! We require aid immediately! I repeat, a Gloriana flagship is leading the chaos fleet!"

Her broadcast was interrupted by someone joining her vox broadcast with a powerful chaos-tainted voice, "Inquisitor Atia...brave of you to face my fleet with such a meager one of your own. Does the Imperium not possess actual flagships anymore? I half expected to see _Macragge's Honour_ here. Is Roboute too busy to come fight me himself? Or is he still sleeping?"

The voice was hauntingly evil, but also had a beautiful charisma to it. Seiras would be lying if he said it was unpleasant. He actually wanted the voice to keep talking for some reason he couldn't explain.

Atia seemed to be affected by the voice's power as well and took a moment to respond, "We do...but they are busy fighting other threats. Ultramar has its own problems to deal with."

"I know you're lying, Inquisitor. That's your flawed nature isn't it? To force the truth out of others, but to hide your own fears and insecurities with a life of lies and secrets. It's rather hypocritical if I must say. Your Inquisition is the biggest joke I have seen since the Imperium put the Emperor on the Golden Throne and started worshipping him as a god. Do you realize that the Emperor forbade his worship when he walked among men? He even punished the Primarch Lorgar for breaking this law," the voice said amused.

"You lie!" Atia shouted angrily.

' _Is this being broadcasted to the whole fleet too?'_ Seiras thought to himself briefly.

The voice chuckled at her anger and responded with amusement, "For an Inquisitor you're awfully misinformed about the true nature of the Emperor. I know the Emperor better than you, Inquisitor Atia...in fact you could say I knew him very well when he was alive. I walked the same ground as him. I breathed the same air. I fought beside him in many battles."

"Who are you, damn it?! Answer me, traitor!" Atia demanded.

Seiras already knew who the voice was just based on the way he was talking about the Emperor and wondered if anyone else figured it out yet. He was honestly surprised that Atia couldn't put two and two together. It could be possible that she did not want to accept that grim truth just yet.

"I'm simply a loyal servant of Slaanesh...a real god. Let's find out which of our gods is stronger. Let us test the might of Slaanesh's faithful against the dead husk of the Emperor and this pathetic band of heroes," the voice taunted her even further.

"You will regret insulting the Emperor, heretic! We're coming for you, and even if you kill us, the Emperor will cast you down sooner or later! Everyone in Segmentum Solar knows this fleet is here. The Space Wolves do too! You will fail one way or another!" Atia yelled into the vox.

"The Space Wolves are a useless horde of idiots without Leman Russ to command them and I know he is gone. I wouldn't count on them or any other help arriving. The warpstorms have already begun. You cannot escape and help is not coming for you. I will rip apart your fleet ship by ship, and kill all of your men until only you remain. You shall be given as an offering to Slaanesh and raped upon the Altar of Agony. When it's over, you will truly see divinity and beg to be sacrificed. I look forward to hearing your pitiful screams and cries for the Emperor to come save you. But he cannot save you...my father is dead." the voice said in a wicked and somewhat seductive way. Seiras could also hear moaning and screaming in the background as well.

The Inquisitor seemed slightly shaken by the threat as she stood there frozen for a moment in fear.

All of the space marines and Grey Knights tensed up when they heard the last part. Gregorius spoke disbelievingly, "Did he just refer to the Emperor as his father? No Chaos Marine would do that..."

Nogemo shook his head, "No, but a Primarch certainly would..."

Before Atia could say anything else, Seiras stepped forward and cut into Atia's vox broadcast, "Is this the Primarch Fulgrim?"

Everyone present was taken aback by Seiras' blatant interruption and direct question to the chaos leader on the other end of the vox broadcast.

"Hmm...who am I speaking to now?" the voice asked curiously.

"Blood Ravens Librarian, Seiras," he answered calmly. Everyone else seemed shocked at how casual his voice was when speaking to the chaos leader. Others seemed surprised that he actually told the chaos leader his name. The Inquisitor seemed especially fearful of the thought that she was actually talking to Fulgrim a moment ago.

"Seirasss..." Fulgrim hissed the name almost seductively, "Most astute observation. I am indeed the Primarch Fulgrim. Granted who else could be commanding the _Pride of the Emperor_? Such a magnificent ship wouldn't you say?"

The librarian shook his head, "Why do you still call your flagship that if you hate the Emperor?"

"I do not hate father...at least not in the way some of the others did during the Heresy. This ship was built in the shipyards of Jupiter...it was a great gift from my father. _The Pride of the Emperor_ has destroyed hundreds of worlds and dozens of advanced civilizations. It's sentimental for me because the Emperor told me to do so during the Great Crusade. He honoured my legion and my ship with the Aquila long before any of you wore it. So why would I change the name of an already perfect ship?" Fulgrim replied.

"You disgrace and mock the Emperor with that ship's name, traitor. We will destroy it to avenge your betrayal of mankind," Seiras countered.

"My betrayal is mild in comparison to your Imperium's. The real betrayal and disgrace to the Emperor is the mockery that his Imperium has become. He created it, and the real Imperium of Mankind died with him. Your current Imperium is no different than him right now...a corpse barely sustained by a whisper of life. Let it die so that I may properly mourn for my father and forgive his failures. He would hate everything you have done in his absence. Breaking apart the legions? Worshipping him as a god? Refusing to advance scientifically? I would almost wish for him to return just to see him destroy you all himself. The Emperor would not protect a society as pathetic as yours...not when we destroyed countless human civilizations far superior to the Imperium during the Great Crusade. You are not worthy to call yourselves the Imperium of Man. You are not worthy to live in the Emperor's shadow. You aren't even worthy enough to die for him," Fulgrim said condemningly.

"Tell that stupid, pompous bastard to shut up already, Seiras! I don't feel like listening to him talk all damn day!" Viggo shouted.

Seiras ignored everyone else as he tried to understand Fulgrim's point of view.

"Humour me for a moment then if you will, Lord Fulgrim. If you truly believe that, then why did you let things get to this state? Why did you turn against the Emperor of Mankind? Was being an Primarch and son of the Emperor not enough for you? What did the Ruinous Powers offer that he could not provide you?" Seiras asked.

"Seiras, what in the name of the Emperor are you doing?! Why are you asking him questions?! Sto-" Atia was cut off mid sentence.

"I like you, Seiras of the Blood Ravens...you're far more curious to know the truth than any loyalist I've spoken to since the Horus Heresy. I will tell you exactly why I turned my back on the Emperor," Fulgrim interrupted Atia.

Atia froze as she herself was actually curious to hear what Fulgrim was going to say. In fact everyone on the bridge of the _Avenger of Terra_ seemed to be anxiously hanging off his every word.

Seiras could only imagine what the various ship captains were thinking while listening to this vox broadcast.

"The Emperor in all of his divine wisdom actually created the Primarchs in a way that your Inquisition would deem heretical. He created us with his own DNA and crafted our bodies and minds with advanced technology far beyond any science you would understand. With his own genome, and the machine dragon's help, the Emperor performed one vital deed to make us primarchs as powerful as we are. He consorted with the Chaos Gods and infused us with warp energy. We, and every space marine created from a primarch's gene-seed only exist because of the Emperor's Pact with the Dark Gods of the Warp," Fulgrim continued.

Everyone on the bridge had varying reactions ranging from disbelief to blatant anger. The Commissar, the Grey Knights, the Inquisitor, and even the Admiral all found the idea preposterous. The entire Deathwatch Kill Team was furious at that mere suggestion of something like that.

"Enough of these heretical lies! I will not believe it! He is trying to break our faith! Do not listen to this preposterous heresy! All traitors know how to do is lie!" Atia shouted at everyone.

"The Adeptus Custodes and the Grey Knights have no primarch and were created directly from the Emperor. They are inherently immune to chaos in comparison to regular Astartes...but every space marine created from the gene-seed of a Primarch was born from the power of the dark gods," Fulgrim continued.

Everyone gawked at that crazy revelation. Nobody seemed to believe it as they all exchanged dumbfounded expressions. The space marines shook their heads at the information. Several debates erupted behind him, but Seiras tuned them all out as the information sunk into the depths of his mind.

"You lie! That's not true!" Seiras shouted into the vox.

"Oh but it is, Seiras. You wanted the truth...there it is. I'll see you very soon space marines," the primarch spoke calmly before the transmission ended.

Dead silence filled the bridge as Atia looked over at Seiras. She shook her head seriously, "What were you thinking?! Do not even try to ask traitors questions! He was trying to fill our heads with lies and demoralize the fleet. That broadcast went out to the entire fleet and emperor knows who else!"

"You're right, Inquisitor...he was trying to mess with our heads. I don't believe him," Seiras said reassuringly.

"He said he would see us soon...Fulgrim is expecting us to invade his ship," Kallius interrupted seriously.

Everyone seemed shocked by the revelation that they had to go fight a primarch and that he knew they were coming for him.

"Damn those heretic traitors!" the Commissar shouted at the top of his lungs. His voice caused several bridge officers to flinch.

"I don't know how effective we're going to be against a Primarch. What's even worse is all unofficial records claim that Fulgrim became a Daemon Prince. It shouldn't even be possible for him to be in real space with this fleet like this." Seiras said seriously as he looked around at the bridge officers and his fellow Astartes.

"We don't have any means of escape and he said there were warp storms coming." a random officer announced fearfully after a brief silence.

"We should have brought a bigger fleet..." the admiral stated the obvious.

"Kill Team Calamity...your mission remains the same. Infiltrate the flagship, disable its systems from the inside and kill the leader," Atia commanded.

"Inquisitor with all due respect, are you out of your mind?! They'll be killed! That's a Daemon Primarch over there!" the Admiral said fearfully.

The Deathwatch Marines all exchanged skeptical looks with one another, but Seiras shook his head, "We're going to kill that bastard or die trying!"

"Agreed! Stopping him is the most important thing here. Even if we can't kill Fulgrim, we'll disable his ship! A Gloriana flagship could easily turn the Black Crusade in the enemy's favour if it isn't stopped!" Kallius added reassuringly.

"May the Emperor keep you safe, Astartes. Get ready to go," Atia said before gesturing for them to leave.

"Let's hurry! I'll pilot our assault boat and get us on the _Pride of the Emperor_ ," Nemias said as all the space marines charged out of the bridge.

After they left, Atia turned towards the Grey Knights, "Captain Arius, I have one thing to say before you leave. If Seiras shows any sign of corruption or possession...kill him," Atia said seriously.

"As you say, Inquisitor," the Grey Knight Captain nodded. He and his three terminator Grey Knights all began to take their leave shortly afterward.

Without another word, the Inquisitor immediately moved to the command deck next to the admiral as their fleet moved in to engage Fulgrim's Fleet.

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Alright heretics...err readers, that's chapter 6 for you. The plot is finally here! Shit's going to hit the fan really hard now that the strike team has to deal with Fulgrim. The grimdark is ramping up.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Pride of the Emperor**

Kill Team Calamity hurried down the corridors of the ship and towards an elevator. While waiting for it, they all noticed the Grey Knights coming behind them.

"Let's hurry up, we're almost to the hanger!" Seiras spoke urgently as they all filed in with haste. As it descended, they all looked at each other eagerly.

"It's a shame they can't teleport us in...I don't approve of taking a shark boat to the enemy flagship. It would be more effective to send boarding torpedoes if you ask me," Kallius remarked as the group exited the elevator hurried along towards the hanger.

"Sending boarding torpedoes to that ship would be extremely suicidal. They would be effective if we got closer to the _Pride of the Emperor_ , but I highly doubt the Inquisitor wants to go near that thing with the _Avenger of Terra_ ," Nemias explained.

Arius shook his head, "Teleporting over would be the most ideal option, but I doubt we will could do so with the enemy flagship's void shields being as powerful as they are. We're not going to be able to scratch a Gloriana Battleship's shields from the outside, so it only makes sense to take a boat there. I trust our pilot will not fail, yes?"

The entire group focused on Nemias who despite everyone's helmeted faces knew they were staring at him. The Salamander spoke calmly as they continued running, "I assure you, we're going to make it. We will need to fly into the enemy hanger if we actually want to get inside of the ship though."

"So be it. I have never worked with Deathwatch before, but I trust you all to do you duty as well as any Grey Knight would. Stay pure and beware the corrupting powers of daemons and warpspawn," Arius replied as his head turned solely towards Seiras.

Seiras glanced over at the Grey Knight Captain, "We're yours to command, Captain Arius. My team was assigned as your backup after all."

"Of course brother Seiras. I look forward to seeing your prowess as a battle psyker in action," the Grey Knight replied resoundingly.

"Likewise," the Blood Raven responded.

As they finally reached the hanger, they could see Stormtroopers running down the corridors next to them as well. A broadcast sounded over the ship again, "All pilots report to the hanger immediately. Clear a path for the boarding parties. Launch fighters and bombers at once! Spirit the assault boats to the enemy flagship! Ship personnel report any suspicious activity to your commanding officer at once! Remember, the faithful will have the Emperor's protection."

Alarms were going off like crazy while several other commands sounded over the speakers. The Astartes paid no mind to it and followed behind Arius towards their assault boat. As the Kill Team and Grey Knights all loaded into the largest specialized looking assault boat, a large number of Stormtroopers filled in the empty spaces in theirs and every other boat in the hanger. The pilots wasted no time taking off once the boats were full and immediately flew into the void of space. As the assault boats departed into space, Seiras felt the one they were on starting to shake violently.

Nemias looked back from the pilot's seat and spoke loudly, "Hold on brothers,this is going to be a rough ride! I'm spearheading the boats. Ours looks like it can take a few more hits than the others."

To Nemias' side, one of the Tempestus Scions was copiloting their Assault Boat. Nemias was definitely oversized for the cockpit in the Shark Assault Boat, but he made it work nonetheless with his techmarine expertise.

Lances, cannons, lasers, torpedoes, and all manner of space ordinance erupted over the void's horizon as the two fleets clashed. From where he was sitting, Seiras could see dozens if not hundreds of fighters and bombers covering the small armada of shark assault boats leaving the loyalist fleet.

"So it begins," Kallius spoke calmly as he looked over the boat's inhabitants.

"Seiras, whatever happens, just know that I think you're the worst librarian ever...and that's why I like you," Viggo said making light of the mood after a brief ominous silence.

The Blood Raven stared at the Space Wolf terminator saying nothing. He couldn't see his face beneath the helmet, but Seiras could tell that Viggo was smiling. The wolf always loved the calm before battle and would usually say funny things like that to the others just in case one of them were to die.

"You're the only Space Wolf I like, Viggo, so I suppose the feeling is mutual," Seiras replied with a light chuckle.

"My Armour is contempt, my shield is disgust, my sword is hatred. In the Emperor's name, let none survive! This is no time to laugh brothers. We must gather our hatred for the battle to come!" Gregorius spoke furiously.

"I'm all for battle prayers then," Viggo chuckled at Gregorius' brewing hatred.

"It is better to die for the Emperor than to live for yourself," Kallius joined in the conversation with a prayer quote.

"You carry the Emperor's will as your torch, with it destroy the shadows," Decimus added.

"Lead us from death to victory, from falsehood to truth. Lead us from despair to hope, from faith to slaughter. Lead us to his strength and an eternity of war. Let his wrath fill our hearts. Death, war, and blood; In vengeance serve the Emperor in the name of Dorn," Gregorius spoke another prayer.

"If a man dies that another should live, then that man's spirit will eat at the Allfather's table," Viggo said. Some of the Stormtroopers bowed their heads and prayed silently as the space marines spoke their prayers.

One of the Tempestus Scions spoke up with his own prayer, "You will shoot the enemy once to ensure he fights no more that day. You will shoot traitors twice to ensure nothing less than their deserved death."

The space marines nodded approvingly at the words.

Another Stormtrooper added his own as well, "One cannot consider the fate of a single man, nor ten, nor a thousand. Billions will live or die by our actions here and we have not the luxury to count the cost."

"We die, though our war is eternal. We are doomed, but we walk in darkness. We are forgotten, yet the future is our gift to humanity," one of the Grey Knights decided to add another prayer quote.

A strange and calm silence passed as the Shark assault boat continued onwards. Nobody said anything else as weapons fire began to blow up many fighters and bombers escorting the boats. As they broke past the flanking battleships and flew towards the _Pride of the Emperor_ , a torrent of torpedoes and ordinance flew at them from all sides. Although space marines knew no fear, they were all convinced that the boat wasn't going to make it before exploding. The stormtroopers maintained their resolve just as well as the space marines but a few were beginning to show anxiousness as the assault boat got clipped and spiraled wildly to dodge the majority of the enemy firepower.

"I don't know what you're doing to keep us alive, but keep it up, Nemias!" Kallius said approvingly. Nemias piloted as intensely as he could and narrowly got hit again as he came in range of the flagship.

"Most of the boats look like their getting through the line ships," the copilot stormtrooper spoke as he worked over several displays. Not even a moment after he spoke those words their boat shook wildly as a heavy barrage from enemy fighters shot them.

"We're hit! Enemy fighters are focusing us!" the copilot announced as Nemias skillfully evaded them as best he could.

Over the vox one of the fighter pilots spoke up, "Shark One is a high priority escort! Get those bogies off of them! Furyhawks 2 through 8 clear a path for the boats!"

"Shark 1 this is Furyhawk 1 we've got your six!" one of the Interceptor pilots announced over the vox as a wing of fighters began to gun down the fighters chasing their assault boat.

"Hold on tight!" Nemias announced as he aggressively piloted his way closer to the flagship dodging the enemy fighters. Just when it seemed they were clear, several more fighters arrived and immediately opened fire. The assault boat was now beginning to suffer heavy damage as systems and warnings flashed wildly in the cockpit.

"Emperor protect us," the Stormtrooper copilot said solemnly as the boat seemed to be falling apart.

"We're going in rough, brothers! Brace yourselves! I'm crashing into the hanger!" Nemias shouted.

Their assault boat suffered several more heavy shots and began to spiral out of control. Seeing that everyone was getting anxious, Seiras decided to rally them, "Only in darkness can we truly see light! Only in war are we truly faithful! We are the Emperor's will made manifest! We are the Bulwark of Humanity! We live and die as brothers, and we shall know no fear!"

Atmospheric pressure was immediately lost in the boat as it covered slightly more distance before crashing into one of the hangers of the Gloriana Flagship.

As quickly as they crashed, all eleven Astartes and surviving Stormtroopers aboard the boat released their restraints, picked up their weapons, and exploded out of the crashed boat into an immediate firefight. Decimus was the first one out and covered heavy bolter fire with his stormshield. The hanger was full of heretic humans, Emperor's Children space marines, Chaos dreadnoughts, and a horde of daemonettes among other things.

Many more assault boats flew into the hanger behind them as the group moved out and opened fire. A few had crash landings, but one managed to land properly. Out of these boats swarmed dozens of Stormtroopers and countless other Imperial Guardsmen and Naval Armsmen.

The real relief to Seiras however was when he saw Imperial Fists and White Templars Astartes coming out of several Thunderhawks shortly afterward. Seiras and the others all watched with awe as an Imperial Fists Chaplain and a venerable dreadnought practically leapt out of one and led the newly arrived space marines.

"We need to group up! Fall into a phalanx formation! Kill Team Terminators up front, we Grey Knights will cover the flanks! The rest of you fall in close and gun down everything you see!" Arius commanded the group.

Kill Team Calamity, the four Grey Knights, and the Stormtroopers all formed into a tighter group immediately afterward. The Deathwatch terminators took point while each of the four Grey Knights covered the flanks. They shielded the rest of the group from volleys of small arms fire and bolters as everyone got into more suitable positions.

The Stormtroopers all took cover behind the heavily armoured super humans and focused their lasrifles on shooting down medium range targets and covering the sides and rear of the formation. Decimus took point with a special type of power spear and his large stormshield charging through enemy lines.

Many of the enemy troops were powerless to fight back as the phalanx advanced. To Decimus' sides stood Viggo and Gregorius. The Space Wolf Terminator had two lightning claws and he used them rip apart enemies that were attempting to outmaneuver Decimus.

Gregorius was wielding a Xenophase blade and a combi pistol. He took out all of the enemies that were too fast or elusive for Viggo to hit and covered the two terminators in their advance. To the sides, the front two grey knights had nemesis force swords and storm bolters. They focused most of their efforts in the front with the Deathwatch Terminators.

The back two Grey Knights, one of which included Captain Arius both wielded Nemesis Force Halberds. They sliced apart anyone that tried to charge them from the flanks. Kallius focused his efforts in between the right two grey knights unleashing his grav gun into unfortunate chaos marines. Nemias would periodically alter sides when enemy dreadnoughts or vehicles got close. The Techmarine had a triflame vambrace equipped and was also wielding a meltagun.

Nogemo covered the left side with his Stalker bolter, and also had a power weapon in the shape of a double sided spear on his back. Seiras himself was channeling wards periodically to block heavy weapons fire such as rockets or lascannons as they fought through the army of enemies. Their phalanx progressed quickly through the horde of chaos forces taking no losses thanks to their impenetrable defense.

They wasted no time grouping up with the other loyalist forces that made it into the ship. The Imperial Fists Chaplain turned to face them as they came in to his flank and formed up in a defensive fortification.

"You must be that Deathwatch Kill Team that the Inquisitor said would be here...I wasn't expecting Deathwatch to help fight Chaos Marines, but I won't complain. We need to fortify a better position that's less open than this. I suggest fighting our way further into the ship before they overwhelm us here. If we can get them into a smaller space it'll be easier to bottleneck them and set up defenses. That formation you used to get here seemed effective. We should make a larger one to progress out of here," the Chaplain explained.

Seiras already liked this chaplain and nodded with agreement, "Good idea, Chaplain...we're under orders to sabotage the ship's weapons and void shields as well as engage the bridge. Fighting our way there would be beneficial. If you have a plan we're listening."

"Would it not be wise to keep a forward point here for our escape? The enemy will undoubtedly destroy our remaining boats if we abandon the hanger," another Imperial Fists marine asked.

"Adepta Sororitas made landing at an adjacent hanger with the Majority of White Templar forces. We need to group up with them first," A White Templar Devastator Sergeant interrupted.

"We must fortify in a secure location first. We should also send word for the Sororitas and White Templars to meet us. I will relay our location to them," the Imperial Fists Chaplain stated as he unloaded his storm bolter into charging chaos marines.

His black terminator armor, iron halo, and skull helmet were quite an inspiring sight as he turned back calmly and began to broadcast through a vox, "This is Chaplain Evaldus of the Imperial Fists, we're moving to fortify closer to the bridge. Any surviving loyalists forces meet us there!"

A voice came through on the vox, "This is Captain Valmades of the 8th Company White Templars! We read you, Chaplain! Our forces are scattered, but my men and I can gather them up and meet you there! The Adepta Sororitas are with us as well! We will meet you inside!"

The vox cut off immediately afterward as the sound of heavy bolter fire drowned out the broadcast.

"We need to move right now! Everyone form up! Snipers take down those Chaos Marines with the lascannons! You, Blackshield, put that stalker boltgun to good use and get rid of them! Dreadnoughts fall in with Captain Krias! I want a shield line!" The Chaplain said seriously.

Nogemo did as commanded and started to focus on sniping the enemy Chaos marines with lascannons.

"Behind me, I will clear us a path!" the Imperial Fists Venerable Dreadnought shouted as he moved towards the front of their formation.

"Everyone, stay in formation! The White Templar and Imperial Fists dreadnoughts will take point behind Captain Krias here," the chaplain pointed to the venerable dreadnought, "Kill Team Calamity, I want your terminators and Grey Knights to cover the sides. I would like that techmarine up front with the meltagun! Make sure nothing touches our dreadnoughts!"

"As you say, Chaplain!" Nemias replied as he formed up between two of the dreadnoughts.

"Enemy lascannons purged Chaplain!" Nogemo shouted.

"Good! Move out now! The rest of you stay in close formation. Guardsmen, focus your fire on the Daemons and lighter enemies! Chaos Marine armour is too thick for you to effectively deal with on the move. Leave them to our Astartes when possible!" Evaldus shouted.

"As you command my lord," one of the Guardsmen lieutenants shouted before issuing his own commands to several sergeants.

"Enemy chaos marines down! The path looks clear enough, Chaplain!" Kallius shouted after shooting a suicidal chaos marine with his gravitron gun.

"Move out! Stay behind the dreadnoughts! Stay in the formation!" the chaplain commanded as the small army of loyalists advanced behind the dreadnoughts clearing their way into a corridor.

"Librarian, up front with me, now!" Chaplain Evaldus commanded as he moved to the front next to the venerable dreadnought, Captain Krias.

Seiras moved to the front next to the Chaplain and assisted in taking down or blocking enemies wielding heavy weapons in order to cover the dreadnoughts in their advance.

As they progressed through the ship, it seemed as if they were in an endless firefight with enemies coming both in front and behind. The blast doors closed several times on them between corridors, but they were quickly torn apart by the dreadnoughts or opened by Nemias' technical tampering.

Daemonettes tried to flank and ambush them several times as they progressed, but stood no chance against the Grey Knights and Terminators that stood further back. Upon entering a large deck, Gregorius fired up his jump pack and moved to murder enemy snipers and tear apart heavy weapon fortifications while Nogemo sniped the rest.

Their advance continued like this for a time, and had few casualties thanks to the tactical expertise of everyone present. As they progressed further through the open deck into a larger corridor, Seiras could see the enemy trying to fortify a better position to hold them back.

Unfortunately for them, they could do little against the overwhelming loyalist forces. The combination of Grey Knights, Deathwatch, Dreadnoughts, Stormtroopers, a Chaplain, and a Librarian were nigh impossible to slow down.

"Their attacks are as weak as their faith! Spare none! Suffer not these traitors to live!" The Chaplain shouted fiercely as he smashed his Crozius Arcanum against a Chaos Marine's helmet. Countless foes fell to their relentless ferocity as they continued. The cultists and daemons were too weak to stop them and the chaos marines were too few in number and too spread out to resist their small army.

Everyone fought with increased zeal whether they realized it or not just because of the Chaplain's overwhelming fury. The black clad Chaplain was quite an inspiration as he crushed anyone dumb enough to charge him. Seiras himself felt invigorated by the man's passion for killing the enemy.

"Forward! Now! The bridge is close!" The Chaplain Evaldus shouted as he moved to the front of the group. Seiras couldn't help but admire the way that the Chaplain motivated everyone. Even though they were on their way to fight Fulgrim and damage the Pride of the Emperor, Evaldus had everyone believing that they were actually going to succeed in killing a daemon primarch.

"Is that all the fury you can muster, heretics?! BURN in the Emperor's light! Run away! Run and cower behind your traitor primarch! Let him feel the fury of the Emperor's REAL children!" Evaldus roared as the dreadnoughts unleashed a wall of flame and advanced down the corridor next to him and Seiras.

Seiras walked next to the Chaplain who was now slowly advancing through the gaps in the encroaching flame wall. It must have been quite a terrifying sight to the enemy, because all of the enemy forces began to retreat with haste.

"The Emperor's Fire of Perdition has come to burn away your impurity! There is no escape from retribution and justice, traitors! Shoot them down! Let our hatred resonate through these foul halls!" The Chaplain shouted even louder. His passionate anger had everyone following him with even more zeal if that was even possible.

The loyalists continued their advance through the ship mowing down any final resistance with focused success. After fighting for a good while, they finally took a brief respite. It was only then that Seiras finally realized that he and the others had all been following Evaldus even though he wasn't technically in charge of them or their specific mission. Even Captain Arius was following his orders which seemed strange to the librarian.

' _This Chaplain Evaldus reminds me a lot of Mikelus...and Captain Thule. He truly honours that armour_ ,' Seiras thought as the loyalist force arrived into some type of command room.

"Hold here, brothers! This position will serve our purposes," The Chaplain announced as he raised his Crozius Arcanum.

"If this is where I think it is, then we should be somewhat close to the bridge brothers. I see a lot of life support systems, and a void shield generator connection leads down there," Nemias pointed out a deck window to the group.

"We'll fortify this position here. Techmarines, I want tarantula sentry guns set up in each choke point and the dreadnoughts watching from all sides. Stormtroopers set up flanking positions near choke points shoot anything that moves. Keep yourselves at a medium range...we cannot afford any losses, Astartes or guardsmen."

"Yes sir!" one of them shouted as Astartes and Stormtroopers all dispersed to set up a fortification.

The heavy sounds of footsteps caught their attention as dozens of White Templars, Stormtroopers, and Adepta Sororitas seemed to be advancing down the corridor behind them.

"There they are!" one of the Imperial Fists techmarines shouted.

"Form up quickly brothers and sisters! We're fortifying!" the Chaplain announced to the arriving forces.

The full force of the surviving loyalists all gathered into the main area. While the stormtroopers, techmarines, and dreadnoughts all moved about to set up defenses, Jessenta moved up to the main leaders of the assault.

"We need to destroy as many vital systems as we can. This location is a central point and is good to cut the enemy off from various locations," Evaldus spoke to the group as he pulled out some type of datapad showing a slightly mapped out blueprint of the ship's interior.

"This ship is enormous...there's no way we can cover all of that area and stay in one large group. How do you intend to deal with those different areas?" Nemias wondered

"My group already took out several of the enemies' main weapons and sealed off several hanger corridors. It should keep this flagship from outright destroying our fleet for the time being. Special squads can split up from here and move to take out the main cannons, the void shields, and the lower command deck. Splitting up is our best option so long as this fortifification can remain as a fall back point," Jessenta explained as she interrupted the Astartes.

"We can also leave this area protected as a temporary base of operations to cover our main team while they're going for the bridge. It will keep a lot of reinforcements off of us while we deal with the bridge," Kallius added.

The Chaplain Evaldus thought for a moment as he looked between them, "I take it your Sororitas will be one of the special assault squads you are referring to sister?"

"Yes, most of them. My strongest sisters should go with Kill Team Calamity and the Grey Knights to engage the bridge while the others sabotage the void shields," Jessenta replied.

"All of our strongest forces that we can afford to send should definitely go to the bridge," Arius spoke up.

"I am going with team attacking the bridge! After what that disgusting traitor primarch said about the Emperor, I want his head!" the Evaldus said powerfully.

"Are you sure you don't want to keep watch over the fortification here?" Jessenta asked the Chaplain.

Evaldus growled at her, "My brothers will not fail while I perform this holy mission! I leave the matter of commanding our fortification to Captain Krias and my Imperial Fists here. They will hold the line and ensure the fortification stands! Do not underestimate them!"

"We will hold the line, Evaldus! We will fight to the last until you return from your holy duty! If you do not, then we die for the Emperor this day!" the venerable dreadnought said powerfully as he and many of the Imperial Fists looked at Evaldus for a moment.

"You do our Emperor proud this day, my brothers. Only in death does duty end! Fight with the Emperor's hatred!" Evaldus said resoundingly in response to the venerable dreadnought and a large number of his other battle brothers.

"As you say, Chaplain Evaldus," the venerable dreadnought replied.

"If the Sororitas can handle the void shields, then my Astartes can take out the rest of the enemy ship's weapons. If it comes around for another broadside, our fleet will be in trouble," one of the White Templars said as he walked up.

Seiras quickly identified that he was a Captain as several Sergeants flanked his sides.

"Destroy the Void Shields, Sororitas. The White Templars can deal with the main weapons," the White Templar Captain suggested.

Jessenta nodded at him, "Do what you must, Captain Valmades...may the Emperor be with you."

After a few minutes, everyone had their assignments, and they quickly dispersed to do any damage they could.

The Squad going for the Bridge itself was none other than Kill Team Calamity, the Grey Knights, The Chaplain, Jessenta, Selana, and several other elite Sororitas.

Various Stormtroopers were sent with other squads to help them in sabotaging the flagship, but the majority remained with the Imperial Fists' fortifification. It seemed well guarded with multiple tarantula sentry turrets set up, dreadnoughts covering the entrances, and cover set up in strategic points.

' _Leave it to the Imperial Fists to be defensive on an assault mission_ ,' Seiras couldn't help but think as they moved onward.

The squad moving towards the bridge met little to no resistance as they progressed which seemed unusual. Seiras had a really bad feeling that it had something to do with the fact that they were waiting for them in the bridge itself.

As they reached the final entrance before the bridge, Seiras held up his hand cautioning everyone to stop, "Wait! There's a lot of tainted warp energy in there. The enemy has fortified inside the bridge...they're waiting for us."

"That's hardly surprising considering how quickly we've advanced through the ship. The bridges on these ships are enormous. We could be fighting hundreds once we enter," Decimus said seriously.

"So what's the plan then? If we stick in the formation like we did before, they can't do much to stop us. Plus, Seiras and the Grey Knights can just counter they're daemonic magic," Viggo said looking over the group.

"Vehicles, walkers, daemons, and even enemy marines have done little to stop us. I highly doubt they would throw the same thing at us for their last defense. I suspect heavy firepower," Nemias noted.

"There has been a lack of Noise Marines on this ship. That's unusual for an Emperor's Children warband. If I had to assume what was on what's inside, I would say that Noise Marines are guarding the bridge...perhaps even Greater Daemons," Captain Arius added.

The other Grey Knights gripped their weapons tightly. One of them seemed troubled, "What about the Primarch himself? Is he not a Daemon Prince?"

"Enough! We will crush whatever is past this door! I don't care if there's ten daemon princes in there! We have a duty to fulfill! Let none of us die with our weapons unbloodied! The Emperor Protects!" Chaplain Evaldus shouted.

"The Emperor Protects," everyone repeated in unison except for Viggo.

The Space Wolf held up his lightning claws eagerly, "For Russ and the Allfather!"

"Let us go in first," Arius spoke up as he and the Grey Knights moved up front, "we can block the first wave of whatever is inside."

"It's now or never! Remember...Fulgrim is the highest priority! Any chance to kill him should be taken without a second thought even at the cost of our individual lives," the Chaplain Evaldus spoke seriously.

Jessenta briefly looked at Seiras, who was currently wearing his helmet and psychic hood over it. He glanced over at her. Despite not being able to see each other's faces due to their helmets, Seiras could tell that she looked worried for him.

He looked away clearing his mind of the distraction. Upon opening the door to the bridge the squad was met with over a hundred noise marines as they expected. The bridge was ridiculously big and from the command deck windows they all could see the Imperial Navy and Astartes Fleet fighting as fearsomely as possible. They weren't doing much to damage the flagship, but Seiras took some solace in the fact that Admiral Hightower had managed to leave a large wreck of escort ships, several cruisers, and even two of the Despoiler Class Battleships.

Seiras turned towards the huge group of noise marines. Many of the front line ones had blastmasters. While he wasn't one hundred percent sure how they worked, Seiras knew that they were devastating sonic weapons and that their formation wouldn't do well against such attacks.

The first wave came and would have easily killed them all if it hadn't been for the Grey Knights' raising a joint barrier to block it.

"Spread out! Watch out for those sonic blasters!" Seiras commanded as he formed a massive ward to block the secondary wave of them.

The group all spread out and wasted no time charging the noise marines. Firing his jump pack, Gregorius leapt high in the bridge and smashed down breaking their formation up. He immediately went to work slicing through the noise marines as best he could.

He swung with furious hatred at them and shouted as loudly as possible, "DIE TRAITORS!"

Looking out the window, Evaldus spoke loudly, "The Navy fights on as well brothers and sisters...do not falter! DO NOT HESITATE! SUFFER NOT THE HERETIC TO LIVE!"

Everyone charged as fast as they could to take out the noise marines with the blastmasters first. They were successful at cutting down the noise marines at close range and were gaining the edge rather quickly.

Their success was short lived as many more came to reinforce the area. What looked like the noise marines' leader spoke through an amplification speaker of some kind nearly defeaning the room, "HEAR THE SONG OF SLAANESH LOYALISTS!"

Upon finishing his statement, the noise marines began to play a defeaning cacophony of what Seiras could only describe as chaos music. It was loud, aggressive, and physically painful to listen to as the various Astartes and Sororitas all shouted and grimaced in agony.

"LOUDER LOUDER! WE ARE AMPLIFIED!" another noise marine shouted so loud that Seiras was convinced it was impossible to be louder. From what he knew of noise marines, they were capable of projecting sounds in decibals higher than people could actually hear. It caused brain melting agony according to all accounts he had heard and read. Those descriptions did not do justice to the pain it was causing them now though.

Various strange sounds began to play with the cacophany as it started to overwhelm their senses. Seiras heard singing, moaning, and screaming as well. It was impossible to actually describe how it sounded, but the longer he heard it the better it started to sound.

Seiras could barely believe his ears as he started to enjoy the sound and the weird combination of pleasure and pain it brought him. For some reason the pain felt bearable now.

"SLAANESH SINGS TO US! HEAR HIS PERFECTION!" the noise marines' leader shouted again.

Seiras felt himself slipping into what could only be described as a trance. There was a strange ecstasy washing over him that he could barely resist now. His pain stopped finally and he stood there staring around at his allies fighting to ignore their agony as they fought back enemy chaos marines.

The noise marine leader noticed Seiras' unusual reaction to the cacophany as the two looked at one another.

' _Why doesn't it hurt anymore?'_ Seiras wondered as he absent-mindedly stared at the chaos marine leader for a brief moment.

 _"Seiras do something!"_ He heard somebody psychically scream in his head snapping him out of his daze. It was one of the Grey Knights. Specifically it was Arius.

The Grey Knight appeared to be resisting the dirge better than everyone else, but was getting overwhelmed by a dozen sonic blasters. Drawing on as much warp energy as he could, Seiras fired a torrent of lightning into the noise marines suppressing Arius. This broke up the cacophany's flow temporariliy allowing Arius to break free and slice apart many more enemy marines.

The loyalists wasted no time recovering as they all rushed the noise marine leader hoping to stop the cacophony. As they did so, another row of noise marines moved forward with sonic blasters and began to suppress them again.

"Daemonettes behind us!" Jessenta shouted loudly.

"Sisters handle them! Gregorius cover them!" Kallius issued commands as he unloaded his grav gun into as many noise marines as possible.

"We can handle the Daemonettes! Keep fighting brothers!" Jessenta shouted as she gestured for her sisters to kill the warp fiends.

Their forces were now divided, which wasn't a good thing. The Astartes minus Gregorius all began to gain momentum as they pushed further into the bridge.

 _"Seiras form up with us!"_ Arius shouted psychically as he and the other Grey Knights formed a tight formation.

 _"This is too dangerous with those blastmasters!"_ Seiras shouted psychically at him.

 _"We can negate them if we pool our power. Together, we must form a psychic barrier and advance. As one brothers!"_ the Grey Knight spoke telepathically.

The librarian and the four Grey Knights pooled their psychic powers together as they made a massive barrier. They focused intensely as they advanced through the wave of sonic blasters with it. This drew a lot of attention their way and alleviated pressure on the others allowing them to kill off flanking enemy marines.

 _"At my word break lose and kill those ones creating the dirge. There are eight creating the amplification. Seiras, use whatever you have to keep their leader distracted while we do so. He seems focused on you,"_ Arius said as the five super human psykers moved closer.

 _"I'll deal with him!"_ Seiras replied eagerly.

 _"Break off! Now!"_ Arius shouted psychically to the others. The Grey Knights each charged in a different direction unleashing devastating pysker enhanced melee cleaves through the horde of traitor marines as they made their way to the ones amplifying the dirge.

Seiras channeled lightning over his force sword as he charged the noise marine leader cutting through any chaos traitor unfortunate enough to be in his way. The noise marine leader saw him charging and immediately tossed down his unique looking sonic blaster and drew what Seiras could only describe as a daemonic power sword.

The two clashed blades and unleashed a deafening shockwave as their swords met. It was only then that Seiras realized this was some type of unique sonic power sword. The very air began to shake as the noise marine swung it in deadly arcs trying to disorient the librarian. The chaos marine had incredible swordsmanship skills and was nearly impossible to get an edge on.

He was a far superior melee combatant to the librarian, but could not gain an edge against Seiras' substituted help with psychic attacks. Before the noise marine could deliver a fatal slash to the librarian, Seiras ignited his fist and threw a wall of fire between them.

Falling back temporarily he held his force sword up and charged lightning over it before blinding his enemy in a lightning tempest. This took out many flanking noise marines, but the leader fell further back avoiding it unfortunately. This inevitably caused Seiras to pursue him killing more noise marines along the way.

As Seiras battled his way closer, he fought with increased fury. He was so engulfed in his desire to kill the retreating noise marine leader that he barely noticed that his allies were being pushed away from him and he was being lured closer to the bridge's throne room. The librarian fought with blind hatred, and before he knew it, Seiras was all alone.

His allies were too busy fighting additional reinforcements to reach him, and he was now at the mercy of the Emperor's Children that surrounded him.

' _How did I let myself get surrounded like this?!'_ Seiras thought incredulously.

He turned around furiously and stared down the Chaos forces behind him. He was surprised they didn't try to kill him while his back was turned.

"You must be Seiras, the one from the vox broadcast I take it? Lord Fulgrim was looking forward to meeting you," the noise marine leader spoke approvingly.

The librarian gripped his sword tightly as he approached the man ready for another battle. "Who are you?"

"Karia Terganicus...Terran Born. I was 5th company captain of the Emperor's Children. I'm also one of the highest ranking noise marines ever since Marius Vairosean met his end," the man answered.

Seiras did not recognize the name, but was shocked by the title. Fighting a chaos marine champion and former captain explained a lot about why he wasn't able to do much against him.

' _No wonder he was so hard to gain an edge on. A terran born chaos marine must have unbelievable combat experience_ ,' Seiras thought concerned.

"Ah, Seiras...so you managed to reach me after all," A beautiful but terrifying voice sounded. Seiras could not pinpoint its location until a figure manifested out of warp energy on the Throne in front of him.

He looked up with awe and disbelief at the gorgeous form of Fulgrim. Much to his surprise, the Primarch was not in the form of a daemon, which made no sense.

"I saw you enjoyed the Song of Slaanesh...those who do, can hear the Prince of Pleasure's beautiful voice. Slaanesh prides himself in the enjoyment of his dirge. I haven't encountered a loyalist who could hear it so well. You have been exposed to chaos before I take it? Even more than a typical librarian...how fortunate," Fulgrim said approvingly.

Seiras said nothing as he thought about how he was going to get out of his current predicament.

"You feel it don't you? That gnawing itch in your head...you want to hear it again? Hear Slaanesh and know divinity," Karia ranted excitedly as he played another cacophony again.

It was just as horrible and painful to listen to as it was before, but it didn't take long for Seiras to hear the strange sounds in the cacophony again. At first it was just the screaming, moaning, and emperor knows what else...but as he kept listening, Seiras could hear something indescribable. The music got better the longer he listened to it.

It finally manifested as a voice singing to him. It was feminine, alluring, and impossibly beautiful. Not on the most cherished of shrine worlds or even on Holy Terra herself could he hear a divine and enchanting voice as pleasant as this. Music played as the voice sang to him in an unholy way.

"Feel all the pleasures of yielding to glory; feel all the sins and desires for power;

Embrace my light and indulge in your dreams; hear their joy, their loving screams;

You are a slave to the father of mankind; set yourself free and experience bliss;

Suffer no more the Emperor's lies; Come to me and you shall rise;

Heaven awaits your every wish; All shall be yours, even my kiss."

After the song finished, Seiras found himself snapping back to reality. He was alarmed to see Fulgrim now standing directly in front of him. He couldn't help but admire how beautiful the primarch was. Seiras felt almost enraptured by the Primarch's appearance, similar to how Amelia seduced him. Fulgrim was truly the most attractive being he had ever seen. The librarian wondered if that had something to do with how divine primarchs were.

"How are you not a daemon?" Seiras finally found words to speak. The sounds of his allies fighting Emperor's Children marines was almost drowned out to him at this point.

"I am a Daemon Prince, but for me to leave the Eye of Terror and the Warp for prolonged periods of time, I have to compartmentalize my power. I figured it was worth wearing my human form, for old time's sake. Considering how pathetically Abaddon has been crusading against the Imperium, I figured it was time for me to show him how it's done," Fulgrim said as he walked around Seiras examining him like a circling shark.

The Primarch was much taller than him as expected, but not quite as tall as he imagined a primarch to be. Some stories said primarchs were over 3 meters tall, but Fulgrim was probably around 270 centimeters in height if Seiras had to guess. Fulgrim wasn't that much larger than Nogemo in reality, and the blackshield was simply an abnormally large Astartes from the Alpha Legion.

Fulgrim gave Seiras a curious look, "You said you were from the Blood Ravens? Who is your primarch?"

"We don't know," Seiras answered immediately.

For some unexplained reason he actually felt compelled to speak to Fulgrim instead of fight his way to his allies. Not to mention, they were not trying to kill him at the moment which only made him more curious as talking face to face with a primarch was a once in a lifetime opportunity for a modern day space marine. Even though Fulgrim was an evil traitor, Seiras could definitely see why primarchs were so revered just based off the way Fulgrim radiated in comparison to everything around him.

The primarch chuckled at him, "Of course you don't know your primarch. Most of your chapters that do not know of their origins are loyalists from the chaos legions. Have you ever heard of the loyalist chapter called the Red Scorpions?"

"I have heard of them," Seiras replied not really sure what Fulgrim was getting at.

"Yes...they are annoying worshippers of the pathetic Codex Astartes that my brother Roboute wrote. Ironically however, I am their primarch," Fulgrim said with amusement.

"You're lying! The Red Scorpions are one of the strictest and most devoted chapters I've ever known!" Seiras spat angrily.

"Am I lying? They value perfection just as all my sons do. Those of my legion who did not approve of our turning against the Emperor ran to the Ultramarines for protection. You might find it surprising to know that a great number of your chapters that claim to be from the Ultramarines or other loyal legions are actually sons of the traitor primarchs. Take your Minotaur friend for example...he comes from World Eater gene-seed. From my brother Angron," Fulgrim said with a sly grin.

Seiras glared at him, "Assuming that were true, how could you possibly know that!? What makes you think I would believe it?!"

"I don't expect you to...although considering your, individuality, strong sorcery, and abnormal curiosity for an Astartes I have an idea who your primarch is. Would you like to know?" Fulgrim taunted slyly.

The Blood Raven stared into Fulgrim's beautiful purple eyes as he felt a gnawing curiosity well up inside of him.

' _Does Fulgrim actually know who my primarch is_?' Seiras wondered.

"Your primarch is-"

"SEIRAS!" Arius called out as he charged through a line of chaos marines with the other Grey Knights to reach the librarian.

The Grey Knights and remaining Kill Team members finally reached Seiras and all called out to him concerned. During his brief conversation with Fulgrim and Karia, his allies had managed to wipe out most of the noise marines.

"What were they doing to him?!" Kallius demanded angrily.

"Secure that librarian at once!" The Chaplain practically commanded to the Grey Knights.

Captain Arius moved in swiftly and teleported behind Seiras pulling him away from Fulgrim and Karia as the other Grey Knights slaughtered several chaos marines that tried to stop him.

"Snap out of it, Seiras!" the Grey Knight captain shouted as he punched Seiras out of his daze.

The librarian immediately regained his clarity as his allies gathered around him.

"What was I...doing?" Seiras said disbelievingly as they all stared at him.

Thankfully, the Sororitas and Gregorius were finally back as well. They all moved in quickly to regroup as the others turned to stare Fulgrim down.

"Ah, so you all managed to reach me after all? Quite impressive. The Emperor truly sent his best to stop us," Fulgrim said with a mocking grin as he drew his sword and stepped forward.

All of the surviving chaos marines watching nearby moved in to kill the loyalists now that they were surrounded. They stopped shortly afterward as Fulgrim raised a hand.

"Everyone lower your weapons. They came for me...so I will let them try to kill me. Come now loyalists and show me how powerful you all are!" Fulgrim laughed.

The enemy chaos marines all stepped back as Fulgrim slowly waved his blade gesturing for them to give the loyalists room to fight him.

"That's the primarch of the Emperor's Children?!" Viggo demanded.

Most of them had varying levels of confusion at Fulgrim's non-daemonic appearance, but had little time to ask about it as the Primarch swung his daemon sword at Seiras first.

The Librarian immediately went down with a devastating scar across his armour's midsection. He could barely believe the speed at which it occurred and could only watch with disbelief at how completely slow to react he was.

He quickly tried to recover as he swung his force sword in devastating lightning infused flurries. Fulgrim easily parried them before tripping the librarian and scissor kicking him forward. As Seiras stumbled forward, he felt the Primarch deliver a powerful roundhouse kick sending him flying.

"Seiras!" Kallius shouted seriously with anger radiating from his voice.

"You'll pay for that you traitorous primarch bastard!" Viggo shouted as he charged at the Primarch with his lightning claws. Everyone else charged with their melee weapons as well except for Nemias, Kallius, the Sororitas, and Nogemo. They all tried to shoot Fulgrim with their weapons while the squad surrounded him, but it did little to hurt the Primarch as he danced around their attacks.

Fulgrim toyed with them all as he parried, blocked, and dodged every melee attack from all sides. His swordsmanship skills were downright incredible as he made quick work of everyone.

The primarch effortlessly beat them all down one by one without recieving a single scratch. He purposely did not deliver death blows for some reason as he seemed to genuinely enjoy their despair and pain in the situation.

"Pathetic...you all fight like feeble children. The Emperor's finest?! Don't make me laugh! None of you can even land a hit on me! The mighty Grey Knights...Deathwatch...and you even brought women to help you? How amusing," Fulgrim chuckled as he moved over towards the Sororitas.

Jessenta, Selana, and several of their elite sisters were literally powerless against Fulgrim as he moved in to beat them down. "Women...fighting...hahaha! I thought only Eldar females fought!" Fulgrim laughed as he cut Selana's armour in lightning fast strokes causing it to break apart.

The woman stood frozen in fear as Fulgrim picked her up by the throat, "So vulnerable...so weak. I think I'll let my marines rape you. Once they're done, the regular crew and daemonettes can have what's left. Or would you prefer I give you to Slaanesh as an offering?"

Selana shook with fear as Fulgrim moved his blade to her helmet, "I wonder what that face looks like..."

"Stop it, you freak!" Jessenta shouted as she attempted to swing her power sword at Fulgrim from the side. He effortlessly avoided it. She made it two steps closer before Fulgrim's Daemon sword slashed her. It was a genuine miracle that she wasn't cut in half from the slash as the Cannoness Commander went down in a pool of blood.

The white haired primarch shook his head, "I detest heroes and foolish mortals who don't know their place."

Before he could do anything else to Selana who was still in his grasp, Fulgrim felt a massive torrent of doombolts blast him back. He dropped the petrified Selana who quickly ran over to check on Jessenta. The Cannoness Commander was now bleeding out from her stomach. Nogemo and Nemias moved over to check her as well as the other Sororitas. The Techmarine attempted to administer a quick solution to her bleeding as Fulgrim turned to face the second wave of psyker attacks.

As she attempted to remain conscious, Jessenta was surprised to see Seiras now standing again.

Fulgrim looked over and saw Seiras overflowing with Psychic energy and crackling with lightning, "Still alive, Seiras? You are quite impressive. You're no Ahzek Ahriman, but you've got potential to be a champion of chaos. Given enough time to perfect your talents, you could be powerful if I let you live."

Kallius looked over concerned when he saw a strange glow coming off of the librarian. It looked ominous and completely tainted. The librarian growled with anger as he charged again. The area around him erupted in purple flames as he went after the primarch.

"That's warp corruption," one of the Grey Knights said to Arius as he watched Seiras battled against Fulgrim in a hateful frenzy.

"Fulgrim was trying to corrupt him," Arius replied as he gripped his Nemesis force halberd with anger and moved in to back the librarian up.

Seiras' attacks were far more powerful and quick now, as they managed to slightly stagger Fulgrim, but he still couldn't break the Primarch's guard or actually hurt him.

"As one brothers! Everyone, work together!" Evaldus shouted as he ran up and dove into Fulgrim from the side. He narrowly parried the Primarch's daemon sword with his Crozius Arcanum before grabbing a hold of his arm.

As the Chaplain held Fulgrim still for a moment, Viggo moved in with his lightning claws and delivered a massive slash over Fulgrim's back delivering the first hit to the primarch. The white haired primarch seemed furious now as he immediately threw off Evaldus.

He spun around to block Viggo's followup attacks and quickly grabbed the Terminator's arm using his lightning claw to stop Arius' force halberd coming from an opposite angle. In the span of several seconds he easily gained the edge again despite all of them now tag teaming him from all sides.

Decimus charged with anger and swung his power spear as hard as he could, but was immediately redirected into Viggo, before Fulgrim tripped both Terminators. They didn't even hit the ground before Fulgrim was blocking an aerial dive from Gregorius.

Fulgrim caught the Black Templar mid air and used his body as a shield to block several of the other Grey Knights who moved at opposing angles and speeds. The Black Templar felt himself being impaled by force weapons before getting tossed down.

Seiras moved in to guard Gregorius as Fulgrim went for the kill, narrowly stopping the Primarch's blade. With divine speed, Fulgrim stabbed Seiras again before high kicking him in the head and back to the ground next to the Black Templar.

"I'm growing tired of this...time for you all to die!" Fulgrim growled as he cut down the Grey Knights that moved to stop him from attacking the downed Seiras and Gregorius. Two of them fell to his flurry of onslaughts, and were powerless both physically and psychically to stop him.

Fulgrim wasted no time killing both downed Grey Knights before spinning over to disarm Arius and impaling the Grey Knight Captain. Arius fell down injured, but not dead. He would have been dead had Chaplain Evaldus not tackled Fulgrim from behind.

The Chaplain fought with as much fury as he could muster, "Fight on brothers! He must die!"

Before Fulgrim could peel him off, Viggo and Decimus used a tactical charge to stop him. Viggo moved to cut off Fulgrim's arm while Decimus jabbed his spear for the legs.

Fulgrim practically spun and flipped as he threw Evaldus into Viggo's path and stabbing the Space Wolf as he fell. He gracefully stabbbed Viggo several more times as the terminator hit the ground. Decimus wildly attacked the primarch as this was happening, and managed to block Fulgrim's onslaught from outright killing Viggo. The Minotaur brought up his shield just in time to stop a fatal blow from Fulgrim's blade. The two were then locked in a brief pushing contest as Decimus' shield held back Fulgrim's daemon sword. It did not last long after the primarch started pushing back.

With superior strength and speed, Fulgrim overpowered the terminator and moved swiftly behind Decimus and stabbed him in the back. Pulling his blade free, Fulgrim swept his leg knocking Decimus to the ground as he calmly walked forward.

Evaldus looked over to Seiras, who was now recovering in fury. Gregorius, heavily injured now, threw his xenophase blade to Kallius, "Sergeant, take it!"

Kallius immediately caught the xenophase blade and moved in to cover one of Fulgrim's sides.

As they all moved in for another combo of attacks, Fulgrim failed to see Nemias charging his Meltagun until it was almost too late. The powerful weapon caught him off guard as he moved to avoid it, which put him right in Kallius' path.

The Blood Angel seemed to be moving faster and more erratically as he, Seiras, and Evaldus were the last ones attempting to fight Fulgrim in melee. Nogemo moved to pull the others to safety and looked over at Arius and his remaining Grey Knight Terminator.

"Fall back...we can't win this fight," Nogemo said seriously.

"Fall back?! Are you serious, brother!? We've come too far to fail! Help them Nogemo!" Nemias said as he attempted to incinerate Fulgrim with his flamer and Meltagun once more.

It didn't take long for Fulgrim to take everyone down again. He even moved to knock down Nemias, and the others with precision blows. All of them were now injured on the ground and watched powerlessly as Fulgrim paced around in amusement, "This was a cute little fight...but none of you stood a chance from the beginning. Which of you should I kill now?"

"Kill me...if you can," Nogemo said strongly as he got back to his feet. The Primarch watched amused as the Blackshield drew the double sided power spear off of his back.

"You have done the least fighting here. It seems only fitting that you die before everyone else like the coward you are," Fulgrim noted.

"Your Crusade end here, Fulgrim. I have come to stop you," Nogemo said seriously.

"Does it now? You're quite confident. Who do you think you are? Do you actually think you're going to stop me?" Fulgrim chuckled. His surrounding chaos marines, bridge officers, and even some of the surviving daemonettes all laughed as well.

Seiras was shocked by how calm Nogemo seemed. Most of them were on the verge of defeat, and the Blackshield was not stressed at all despite the situation. With daemonic speed Fulgrim flurried his blade at the Blackshield who matched his attacks and parried them all flawlessly.

The others all watched with shock as Nogemo even managed to land a hit on Fulgrim cutting a strand of his beautiful white hair and putting a small cut over his cheek..

The Primarch stared at him seriously, "It can't be...you're no ordinary space marine."

"Oh but it can...long time no see, brother," Nogemo said as he pulled his helmet off placing it to his armour's side.

"Alpharius?!" Fulgrim said disbelievingly as he actually took a step back.

"Alpharius, Omegon...close enough," Nogemo replied.

"You're the primarch of the Alpha Legion?!" Seiras shouted at the Blackshield as he tried to stand up.

"What are you doing here?!" Fulgrim said shocked.

Omegon grinned at him, "Alpharius is busy right now...but I had to make sure that you did not interfere with our plans. I did not want to have to reveal myself this soon, but it would seem my brothers have failed in stopping you. They fought better than I expected though."

"You bastard, you're no brother of ours! He's been a traitor all along!" Kallius said furiously.

"Quite right, Kallius...but this matter is between two older brothers," Omegon stated as he stared Fulgrim in the eyes.

"No! I won't stand for this!" Kallius roared as a berserker rage began to take over him. He rushed Omegon with hatred and tried to attack him, but was easily stopped by the Alpha Legion primarch as Omegon knocked him back with tremendous force.

Nogemo, or Omegon rather, was now moving way faster than before as he easily beat back the berserking Kallius.

Gregorius seemed horrified by the revelation of his identity. Viggo and Decimus were both seriously injured and had angry reactions as well as they attempted to stand back up. Evaldus seemed too angry to even speak as he gripped his Crozius even tighter now. Arius seemed utterly beside himself with disbelief at how unbelievable it was for a primarch to masquerade as a Blackshield.

Gregorius panted furiously, "You lied to us!? You're a traitor primarch?! ALL TRAITORS MUST DIE!"

Gregorius moved in with the recovering Kallius now holding the grav gun and a combi pistol as he wildly fired at Omegon. Much to everyone's horror however, Fulgrim cut them both down from behind as they charged Omegon. Gregorius fell over unconscious, and Kallius might have been dead for good by the looks of it as blood sprayed the ground from his collapsed form.

"Kallius!" Seiras shouted as he attempted to run in to avenge his fallen Blood Angel Sergeant.

Omegon blocked Seiras and everyone else, "Get back! None of you are a match for him or me...you proved it just now. I didn't want to reveal myself this soon, but it's time for you to go back to the Eye of Terror, Fulgrim."

"So noble, Alpharius, Omegon...whichever one of you it is. What do you owe these loyalists anyway? You're no loyal servant of our father," Fulgrim asked.

"I owe them nothing...I am simply here to stop you," Omegon replied as he and Fulgrim began to fight each other.

"We'll see about that!" Fulgrim hissed

The towering superhuman primarchs both moved in and engaged in a devastating battle of skill and power. Although Fulgrim was a better swordsman by a considerable margin, Omegon was still successful in dodging his attacks and cheapshotting Fulgrim between his combos.

During this time, the enemy chaos marines watched on with considerable excitement eager to move in and rip Omegon apart the moment their primarch killed him. The downed loyalists could do little except watch the battle in their injured state.

The battle between the primarchs didn't last long unfortunately before Fulgrim began to get upset at his inability to kill Omegon outright, "Enough of this! I will end you, Alpharius!"

The entire bridge, loyalists and traitors alike, began to distance themselves from the two primarchs as Fulgrim's body started to glow a pinkish purple.

All they could do was stare on in disbelief as he took on a serpentine daemonic appearance and grew in size. Additional limbs and blades manifested out of the overwhelming warp energy as Fulgrim transformed into his full Daemon Prince form.

"Your life endssssss today, Alphariussssss!" Fulgrim hissed as he slithered towards Omegon.

Omegon fell back with a slight smile, "This distraction was exactly what I intended for you, Fulgrim. You never were one to see the big picture when you were obsessing over something. By the way, brother...I brought reinforcements to stop your fleet. Have a look outside."

Fulgrim slithered forward angrily, but briefly turned his glance towards the deck window and saw something he could not believe...an Eldar fleet flanking his own.

As Fulgrim glared hatefully out the window, one of the Chaos crew members shouted loudly, "Lord Fulgrim, Eldar Corsairs are everywhere! Weapons are misfiring! We're defenseless! void shields are failing!"

"Eldar?!" Fulgrim hissed angrily as he glared out the observation deck window to see countless corsairs coming in to help the Inquisitor's fleet. Atia's fleet looked like it had suffered over two thirds of its numbers in losses, but the arrival of the Eldar corsairs spared them as the Despoiler Battleships and other enemy line ships were now under heavy fire.

The daemon primarch growled angrily, "Men kill them all! I don't have time to deal with you loyalistssss anymore. As for you, Alphariusssss, I will see to it that you ssssuffer for thisss!"

Before anyone could kill the injured loyalists, Omegon threw six unique looking grenades from his waist in all directions obscuring everyone's vision.

The Alpha Legion Primarch moved to take out enemy marines nearby during their distraction and quickly glanced at the remaining loyalists, "Gather your brothers and fall back, I'll hold them off for you!"

"Nogemo, why?!" Nemias gawked. Nobody had any time to voice their concerns as the enemy chaos marines all fired into them and charged.

"We can't retreat! He's right there!" Evaldus shouted hatefully.

Just then a vox broadcast sounded, "This is Captain Valmades, Get out of there at once brothers! We have nukes set to explode at key points in the ship! The enemy is starting to overwhelm us and Eldar boarding parties are on the-"

The transmission cut out afterward as the survivors all gathered their dead and dragged them back. Omegon relentlessly devastated Fulgrim's chaos space marines during their retreat and did what he could to hold back the serpentine daemon prince from stopping the escaping loyalists.

Seiras himself had Gregorius over his shoulder and was trying to cover his team as the Terminators and the Chaplain pulled the dead grey knights.

Jessenta was unconscious and currently being carried by one of the sisters as the half-armourless and injured Selana followed after them.

As they made it to the door, Seiras handed Gregorius to Viggo who was now carrying him, and Kallius. Arius and Decimus moved to take the two dead Grey Knights. Seiras had no idea how most of them were still standing after the injuries they recieved, but assumed it had something to do with their Terminator armour. Nemias appeared mostly alright compared to the others. He took point as they rushed out of the bridge room.

"You fight for the Emperor's slaves?! I will remember this Alpharius! The Alpha Legion will know my wrath! You will SSSSUFFER!" Fulgrim roared furiously as he attempted to stop them.

Omegon simply grinned as he delivered a strategic slash over Fulgrim's face before dashing out of the hanger at inhuman speed.

After leaving the bridge, Omegon strategically fell back after the retreating loyalists and sealed the door to the bridge with a nearby panel before blowing its panels off. The Astartes all looked at him suspiciously and hatefully as he slowly turned towards them.

Omegon looked them over for a brief moment and grinned, "It's been an honour fighting alongside you all...but I must leave now. The Alpha Legion sends its regards. For the Emperor my brothers."

"What?! You're running away now?! What were you even doing here you damned traitor?!" Nemias said disbelievingly.

"I told you that if you betrayed us I was going to kill you!" Seiras shouted furiously.

"We should kill him now, before he escapes!" Decimus roared.

"You're welcome to stay and fight Fulgrim whenever he breaks down that door, but I would not recommend it. Even I can't beat him alone in that form. I suggest you all leave," Omegon said calmly despite the hostile hatred everyone was directing his way.

"Not before I get your head to send to Holy Terra!" Evaldus growled as he charged with his Crozius Arcanum.

Omegon caught the chaplain's wrist mid swing and squeezed tightly as he moved his double sided spear into Evaldus' face. He said nothing as he effortlessly tossed the Chaplain back looking over the disbelievingly loyalists.

"I did the wrong thing for the right reason, brothers. I came to make sure Fulgrim did not succeed in aiding the Black Crusade. I succeeded. It is a shame that things had to happen this way for you all. Good luck getting off this ship...and watch out for Eldar," Omegon said as he began to take his leave.

"Nogemo!" Seiras called out hatefully, "You'll die for this you fucking traitor!"

"I'm not Nogemo...I'm Alpharius," Omegon said to him briefly before taking off.

Evaldus immediately started firing his storm bolter at the primarch as he left, "The Alpha Legion can eat this you damned traitorous snake!"

They all watched with shock as Omegon avoided the bolter fire and left through some opposite corridor. Seiras had no doubt that he was heading for one of the hangers.

Evaldus growled hatefully, "This is dishonourable! We should not be retreating! Better to die for the Emperor than to live for ourselves! He betrayed us and now runs away in fear?! How disgraceful!"

"We don't have time to stand here, brothers! This ship is going to blow up whenever those bombs go off. We'll dicuss this later! We need to get out of here before they break down that door. Are the void shields down?!" Arius asked seriously.

"They should be if my sisters did their jobs," Selana spoke up. She and several of her elite sisters were remarkably still alive, but the same could not be said for Jessenta who was in just as bad of a condition as Kallius.

"Leave these dead Grey Knights then. I will have their teleport homing beacons set to bring them back to the flagship. It'll be risky, but it's all we can afford to do since they're dead and we can't exactly drag terminators out of here. The rest of us need to fight our way to the hanger!" Arius said seriously. Decimus let go of the Grey Knight he was dragging along with Arius.

The Grey Knight Captain quickly sent their teleporting beacons to go off before the group began to move again. Seiras was at the very back of the group and glanced down at the two dead Grey Knights. He immediately picked up the Nemesis Force Halberd clutched tightly in the grip of one of the dead Grey Knights before following behind the rest of the group.

"We need to gather up with Captain Krias and Captain Valmades and get out of here!" Evaldus said as the Space Marines and Sororitas all made their way back to the fortification.

"Captain Valmades, come in! We are on our way out now! Do we have extraction?!" Evaldus asked as the group hustled back to the fortification.

"Hanger four is secured! We have inbound thunderhawks and Shark Boats! HURRY BROTHERS I am still here! We're already evacuating!" Valmades shouted.

They didn't take long to reach the Imperial Fists fortification and were relieved to see most of it still intact, but a noticeable lack of forces were there. Only Captain Krias, a sizeable force of Stormtroopers, and Imperial Fists Marines remained.

The Dreadnought quickly spoke as they arrived, "Most of our forces are already en route to the hanger! We were waiting here for you, Evaldus!"

"You have my thanks brother! Let us get out of here!" the Chaplain shouted as the group all hauled their asses as fast as possible.

Seiras was relieved that they had backup now to fight off enemy forces because he and his remaining team were in no condition to effectively fight hordes of enemies anymore. Arius happened to notice Seiras carrying a nemesis force halberd, but had no chance to mention it as the group hastily escaped towards the hangers fighting off foes.

The Blood Raven was relieved when Gregorius regained consciousness again. He seemed very angry about them having to "run away" but that was all they really could do at this point. The Black Templar quickly got off of Viggo freeing one of the Space Wolf's arms to help fight.

Seiras remained in the very back of the formation to cover for the lagging Stormtroopers and injured Astartes and Sororitas. A great number of Daemonettes were chasing behind the group and managed to snag an unforunate few. Seiras unleashed a vortex of flames to cover for the last of them as the survivors in the very back reached him. Selana and several Stormtroopers were the last people to pass by him and she was limping rather badly much to his concern. It appeared she was suffering from wounds inflicted by daemonettes and Fulgrim's earlier assault.

The Sororita didn't make it far as she collapsed in front of him causing a few of the Stormtroopers and Seiras himself to stay back assist her. She tried to get back up again but to no avail. As the Stormtroopers pulled her to her feet, a few chaos marines came around the corner and fired a volley of rockets over their heads. Seiras blocked them from hitting the group, but unfortunately redirected the explosion into the ceiling. This cost them dearly as an entire section of the corridor exploded in front of them separating Seiras, Selana, and the handful of the Stormtroopers from the rest of the group which was now almost to the hanger.

The stranded loyalists quickly took down the two enemy space marines, but were now in a very bad situation.

Seiras immediately tried to send a psychic message to Arius, but couldn't much to his surprise. He opened his vox channel afterward, "This is Librarian Seiras, come in! Some of us got separated back here!"

"You're going to have to find another way out brother! The entire corridor is collapsing! We don't have time to dig it out! Were nearly to hanger four! There's no other way here from the other side!" Evaldus shouted into the vox.

"Is there any way to teleport us out?!" Seiras asked.

"I can't guarantee it. Not with all the fighting happening right now! I'm not even sure my dead Grey Knights will get teleported out of here." Arius joined into the vox.

"You can teleport out of there, Seiras! You're a librarian after all," Nemias spoke seriously into the vox.

Upon hearing that fact, Selana and the Stormtroopers all jerked their heads towards the librarian expecting him to do so.

Seiras briefly examined them and shook his head, "I have others with me and the warp is too unstable on this part of the ship!"

"Then try to get to another hanger brother! I'll bring a thunderhawk around to pick you up!" Nemias shotued into the vox.

"We'll find our way to one!" Seiras shouted before turning to the group he was stranded with.

They all appeared distressed about being cut off from the others. One of the stormtroopers spoke up seriously, "The bombs are set to go off in fifteen minutes! We better fucking hurry if we want to make it out of here alive!"

"ARGH! I can't move! Just go on without me!" Selana grimaced in pain as she attempted to put pressure on her feet. She was in no position to fight or run.

Seiras had no idea what was wrong with her, but considering that she was a normal human who just survived an encounter with a primarch, it was safe to say that she got injured in someway as even all of the Astartes and Grey Knights were injured from that battle.

"We're not leaving you to die," Seiras said as he lifted her over his shoulder.

Selana immediately tried to protest, "What do you think you're doing, Seiras?! Put me down! This is stupid!"

"We stayed behind to help you. Leaving you here would have made it all for nothing. You're going to survive, sister," Seiras replied sharply.

"Fine...you can all die with me," Selana said grimly as she stopped struggling against Seiras.

Seiras looked over the stormtroopers once she calmed down, "C'mon men, let's hurry! Selana can you hold on to me? It'll make it easier for me to fight."

"Of course I can! Give me a bolter too!" she shouted as she wrapped an arm over Seiras' neck and wrapped her legs around him holding on tightly.

The Stormtroopers all followed after the librarian who was running at remarkable speed with Selana now on his back. The group moved around and fought through daemonettes and cultists before reaching what was presumably another hanger. Unfortunately, all of the ships in the hanger were gone or destroyed.

"Seiras look out!" Selana shouted as she unloaded an entire bolter towards his rear.

Seiras turned around just in time to take a lascannon shot to his chest which immediately took him down. Before he could even locate where the shot came from, another lascannon shot blasted his psychic hood and the top of his helmet forcing him to the ground.

Looking up in a heavily injured state, Seiras could now see a lone chaos marine holding a lascannon from the hanger entrance. With the last of his strength, Seiras fired a surge of warp lightning towards the Emperor's Children marine killing him immediately.

Seiras attempted to stand again, but was now losing consciousness. Even despite his superhuman constitution, he was finally starting to feel the full effects of his injuries. He struggled to remain alert as his vision went blurry.

Selana was now attempting to rouse him from his daze as she pounded on his helmet, "Seiras! Get up! We have to move!"

"Cultists incoming!" one of the the Stormtroopers shouted as he saw a pack of rabid cultists running towards them.

"We have to go, guys! The bombs are going to go off soon!" one of the anxious stormtroopers announced as he and the others gunned down the heretics coming after the downed Space Marine.

Just then a vox broadcast came through to them, "Seiras, where are you?! Brother!?"

"This is Lieutenant Reinhard, the librarian is injured. We're in designated hanger 8 of the flagship guarding his body!" the ranking Stormtrooper spoke into the open vox.

"Survive guardsmen, we're coming!" Nemias answered his message.

"The _Pride of the Emperor_ is retreating! There's too many Eldar ships for you to get there! Fall back, Salamander!" Valmades shouted into the vox.

Before anyone could respond, the vox went dead as a strange sound filled the room. The Stormtroopers barely had time to react as a squad of Eldar ran into the hanger and shot down every last cultist and approaching chaos marines around them.

Not even moments after they entered, an Eldar ship of some kind decloaked in the hanger much to the humans' surprise. The Eldar wasted no time running for it to escape the flagship.

Upon noticing the Stormtroopers, Selana, and the unconscious Seiras they all stopped briefly and raised their weapons. With graceful and frightening speed, they surrounded the group.

"Eldar!? What should we do Lieutenant?" one of the Tempestus Scions announced seriously as he looked at Lieutenant Reinhard.

"Should we fight them sister? They haven't tried to kill us yet," another Stormtrooper asked Selana.

She gritted her teeth hatefully at them as she finally managed to stand on her feet despite the pain in brought.

The Eldar began to speak to each other in their native language as the humans tried to figure out what to do. One of them appeared to be a Dire Avenger Exarch and shook his head, **"Monkeigh...we should kill them!"**

 **"These Monkeigh fight the great enemy. They are not our enemies today. We should take them with us. They were a part of the group that brought down the void shields and weapons for this flagship,"** one of the warlocks replied.

 **"That's a space marine they're guarding. We should definitely bring him,"** a Warp Spider said as he took a closer look at Seiras.

 **"Is that a spirit stone?"** the warlock of the group gawked as he noticed the glowing stone around Seiras' waist.

As they all stared at the spirit stone around Seiras' waist debating about it, the Dire Avenger Exarch shook his head, **"Get them on the ship! We'll deal with this once we're out of here!"**

 **"Why bother? They're monkeigh!"** one of them said shocked.

 **"There is no time to debate it! Take them with us!"** a howling banshee said aggressively as she reinforced the exarch's order.

"What in the Emperor's name are these damned Xenos saying?!" Selana growled angrily.

The Dire Avenger Exarch motioned for everyone to get on the ship. He looked at the humans and spoke gothic shortly afterward, "If you wish to stay alive, come with us!"

"Not a chance, you alien fucker!" one of the stormtroopers said hatefully.

"I'd sooner die on this ship!" Selana growled.

Lieutenant Reinhard begrudgingly stepped forward and replied to them, "We'll go with you."

"Are you serious?!" Selana growled.

"The bombs are going off in any minute now and we can't do shit with the librarian down like this! Just go with them! The Inquisitor can negotiate our release later," Reinhard reasoned.

"Fuck that!" Selana growled.

"Your ally is correct, monkeigh...you will all die. I'm not wasting any more time. You apes can either come with us or die," the Dire Avenger exarch said strongly.

"Fine..." Selana finally agreed. Not a moment afterward, a wraithguard moved over to pick Seiras up and bring him onto the Eldar ship as the rest of the humans were disarmed and escorted aboard with considerable haste.

As they came aboard, they were immediately met with dozens of weapons in their faces. The Eldar guided them into a corner and left guards to watch them. Moments later the Eldar ship quickly left the hanger.

It seemed to be just in time too, as explosions started going off all around the _Pride of the Emperor_.

Despite the huge explosions going off all over it, the Gloriana Battleship was still able to escape intact through the warp.

The humans watched as the remainder of Fulgrim's fleet fled back into the warp despite the warnings of a Warpstorm.

As soon as they were clear, the Dire Avenger Exarch walked over towards the humans and immediately knelt over Seiras. He ripped the spirit stone chained to Seiras' waist right off and looked at it confused.

He began to speak to the stone in his native language after a brief moment, **"Who are you and why were you in the possession of a Monkeigh**?"

 _ **"Autarch Kalyra of the destroyed Craftworld Aldmorian,"** _the stone replied psychically to all of the nearby Eldar.

They all perked up shocked as they eyed it disbelievingly.

 **"I look forward to hearing your story, Autarch,"** the Dire Avenger replied respectfully to the stone.

The humans present could not hear the Spirit Stone talk and thought the Eldar were insane talking to it.

Selana looked at Seiras who was heavily injured, _'Seiras is dying...if we don't get him to an apothecary soon, he's done for.'_

As if they could detect her concern, several of the Eldar moved to retrieve Seiras and drag him away from the other humans. His heavy weight made it a bit of a hassle for them, but they succeeded nonetheless.

"Don't touch him!" Selana growled, but was immediately rewarded with a face full of weapons.

"Be silent, Monkeigh!" the Exarch shouted at them in gothic as he looked over Seiras' injuries briefly.

He immediately turned towards one of the pilots further away, **"Return to fleet. We're bringing the monkeigh with us. Contact the healers...I want this Space Marine alive."**

 **"What about the others, Exarch?"** one of his underling Dire Avengers asked.

 **"Keep them alive for now. I want this librarian's cooperation and I will use them as leverage. If they prove useless I'll simply send them back to their Inquisitor,"** he responded.

Selana sighed heavily as she took her helmet off and looked around, _'Emperor, protect us.'_

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Yo, so you guys thought this story was all drugs sex and rock and roll...well there's fighting and stuff in there too. So yeah, I'm sure a lot of people easily figured out that Nogemo was Alpharius/Omegon just based on all the clues I left. Of course since he was an Alpha Legion marine that's hardly surprising...they're ALL Alpharius. I thought it was almost comedically obvious that Nogemo is Omegon backwards.

Anyways, Seiras and some others are now in the custody of the Eldar. Things are about to get really heretical now.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Mercy of the Eldar**

Seiras opened his eyes in confusion to find himself in an unfamiliar setting. It was unquestionably alien given the xenos designs and symbols that he saw covering the walls and the technology around him. He had no recollection of getting there and quickly realized that he must have passed out from his injuries.

His mind raced frantically as he instantly understood the gravity of the situation. Without wasting another second, he jerked upright only to find himself in strange bone-textured restraints. They had all four of his limbs bound to some type of table. He was alarmed greatly by this but was even more confused to find the upper half of his armour was missing.

His awakening had caused alarm to an unseen individual which he quickly noticed after a moment. There was one alien present in the room.

The librarian panicked momentarily as he used his psychic powers to break free of the restraints. Lightning crackled and seared through them as he crushed them apart and ripped his arms and legs free. Judging by their tough but smooth texture, he realized it was wraithbone. Before the nearby alien could react, the space marine leapt up and grabbed a hold of it pinning the creature against the wall. With deadly intent, he spoke quietly, "Where am I?!"

The alien pinned beneath his superior strength looked terrified of him as his grip firmly held it by the neck. Seiras took this time to identify it and confirmed that it was an Eldar. It was most likely female judging by the look of it, and she was wearing clothing as opposed to armour. Her robe was teal and white much to his curiosity.

The alien trembled in fear as the space marine stared at her. She did her best to speak in Gothic with his hand around her neck, "Please, don't hurt me, human...I'm not an aspect warrior. I am not your enemy."

Seiras was surprised that the Eldar spoke gothic to him and was even more surprised that an Eldar would admit it was afraid of him. In all of his years, none had ever done so. That unfortunately made him not trust the deceptive creature. Seiras slightly loosened his grip on the Eldar and looked at her dangerously, "Where am I alien? What am I doing here? Answer quickly or die."

"T-they just told me to tend to your injuries, human. You're in the third healing chamber on the Eldar Eclipse Battle Cruiser, _Crow of Fate_. Our Aspect Warriors recovered you from the Chaos flagship and brought you and your surviving allies here," she said fearfully.

' _Did she just stutter? I've never heard an Eldar stutter in speech before. She also speaks gothic strangely for an Eldar_ ,' Seiras thought bewildered as he took a moment to look the creature over. She returned his gaze with one of her own.

They stared at each other for several seconds in silence. Had it been with another human, this would have become extremely awkward after a few moments, but Eldar were different when it came to this sort of thing as Seiras understood it. Often, Eldar would simply stare or use body language to communicate. From what he could tell, the female alien was subconsciously trying to express sincerity and simultaneously size Seiras up as a legitimate threat to her safety.

She looked young for an Eldar, which was an interesting thing to consider as most were centuries to millennia old at least. The female alien had long golden hair which was surprisingly not in a ponytail. That was quite a rare sight among Eldar in Seiras' experience as pretty much all of them favored hightails or ponytails of some kind. The young alien female also had flawless porcelain skin, fiery sunset-coloured eyes, and a sharp angular face. She was quite tall as well matching the height of the fleet Commissar from the _Avenger of Terra_. Seiras thanked the Emperor that he did not find her attractive, but the alien was surprisingly not ugly or unpleasant to look at by any means. Eldar had a certain elegance about them despite their repulsive alien nature.

She appeared curious about Seiras' examination of her. Eldar were renowned for having superior senses and could detect someone's intentions very easily based off dozens of miniscule details. This in part was also due to them all being inherently psychic in some way. Finally, she relaxed in the space marine's grip when she realized he wasn't going to kill her and stared into his eyes as their gazes met again.

Once again, Seiras stared back briefly but he soon found his eyes trailing towards her forehead. The librarian briefly examined the symbol on her head and finally spoke, "I don't recognize that symbol...what aspect are you?"

The young Eldar seemed surprised by his knowledge about aspects and answered quickly, "Path of the Healer...in the simplest way of describing it to a human I would be the equivalent of what your kind calls an apothecary or a physician."

"You speak gothic better than I would expect for someone of your position and lack of experience," Seiras noted as he let the female Eldar go.

She was no threat to him currently, so he had no reason to keep her pinned. He found it strange that such a young and low ranking Eldar would know the language of humanity. Typically, not many of their kind bothered learning it except aspect warriors or pirates. The ones that did speak gothic spoke it in a way that made nobles sound like commoners. This Eldar healer on the other hand spoke how a common guardsman or a civilian would. Seiras found it very unusual to compare her alien appearance to her almost human-sounding Eldar voice. It still carried an echoic haughtiness to it but was not quite as condescending as he was used to hearing.

She looked as if she contemplated running away immediately and getting help after Seiras let her go. Seiras detected a slight twitch in her movements and his eyes barely followed. The Eldar seemed to notice his quick reaction to her twitch and decided not to move.

Seiras could tell she wanted to say something about his awareness, as he moved to sit back down on the wraithbone table he had awoken on. The Eldar appeared confused by his actions as he looked away from her and stared at the ground deep in thought.

' _I'm on an Eldar ship...in the middle of Emperor knows where. Why would they save me? How many of the others did they save? Where are they? In fact, where is this ship? Eldar Eclipse Battle Cruiser...Crow of Fate. Why would they bring us here?'_ Seiras' mind rapidly raced over these troubling questions.

The healer looked at him curiously again before speaking, "I have never seen a human like you before. The Aspect Warriors talk about the Losseainn, but you are the first I've encountered."

Seiras looked at her curiously, "I'm the first space marine you've encountered? How old are you? You seem like little more than a child to me."

"I am between an adult and an adolescent among my kind. In your Terran years I am 153. This is my second path, so I am not as inexperienced as you might think," she explained.

' _Eldar have children in these times? I wonder how long it takes them to mature? She looks like a teenager. Why would they have children if their race is doomed? It seems pointless to me. Wait…why would she know about Terran years? This alien is strange,'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"So, you're a teenager then? That explains everything," Seiras said conclusively. That's all he needed to know about her regarding her modesty and unrefined speaking. She must have been socially awkward among her own kind.

"How old are you?" she asked with an uncharacteristic curiosity.

The Blood Raven gave her a mean glare, "Why would you ask me that? What kind of an Eldar are you? I thought your race knew everything."

She seemed surprised by the man's sarcasm and hostility. It was clear that she had no real experience with sarcasm and was unsure of how to respond to him.

"Well, we know a lot. Legends of the ancient times say we were close to knowing everything before the Fall. In this case I simply wanted to know how old you were in human years. We already have your biological age based on the examinations of you-," she finally managed to reply.

"Why would you care to know alien?" Seiras interrupted shaking his head.

"Is this not what humans call small talk?" she countered with a question.

' _This is unprecedented. An Eldar is purposely trying to speak with me? What in the Emperor's name is this?! Where are my brothers?! Where is the fleet?! We need to get out of here! I need answers!'_ Seiras found a hard time dealing with the gravity of the situation as he uncomfortably looked around the room.

His anxiousness seemed to alarm the young Eldar healer who was undoubtedly concerned that Seiras was about to snap and go on a killing spree.

Before she could do anything, Seiras stopped and looked at her again, "You should probably go tell your superiors that I'm awake. I have no doubts that whoever is in charge around here just can't wait to monologue about why I'm here."

"They wanted you alive, and your allies have not been harmed. I believe the farseer intends to let you go according to the aspect warriors that brought you here," the Eldar female explained cautiously.

Despite his conditioning to hate and never trust aliens, Seiras now found himself in a very unusual predicament. Emperor knows why, but these Eldar saved him and he was not in a position to be completely hostile until they gave him a reason to be.

"Are you part of the Eldar fleet that arrived to help us fight the chaos fleet?" Seiras asked concerned.

She nodded, "We are."

"What craftworld are you from? Biel-tan? Saim-Hann? Ulthwé?" Seiras named the three craftworlds he hated the most and the ones that had the most probable cause to keep him alive for some sinister reason.

"No, we're from Iybraesil," she explained.

Seiras felt relief knowing it wasn't one of the craftworlds mentioned as he had killed members from those three many times and they would likely have known who he was. He had never heard of Iybraesil before much to his curiosity.

The librarian turned towards the Eldar perplexed when he saw she was still staring at him and not moving. He narrowed his brow confused, "What is it? Shouldn't you be getting your superiors?"

"Well, you're still injured and not very presentable. I have my orders to heal you and I need to finish tending to your wounds if that's alright with you, human," she said nervously.

Her timid attitude and unusual lack of condescending hostility was the most refreshing thing he had ever seen in an Eldar. A Biel-tan Eldar would have left him to die in the void. That or they would have mocked his every breath from the moment he awoke. Based on his initial impressions of this healer, he believed the Iybraesil Craftworld couldn't have been nearly as bad as Ulthwé or Biel-Tan. Nevertheless, they were still xenos and all xenos were enemies. Seiras knew he would have to proceed with extreme caution and decided to test her.

"Go ahead," Seiras said as he leaned back and stared at her from the operating table he was on. The healer skittishly approached him again and went about her business in using surgical tools and Eldar psychic witchcraft to mend Seiras' remaining injuries.

The librarian felt sickening tingles from the alien touching his bare torso and watched her with extreme prejudice expecting deception at any moment. Despite her fear of the situation she went about her work as smoothly as he would expect from an Eldar. The thing he could not understand was why she would bother to tend to his wounds at all now that he was in no danger of immediate death.

"These ports on your body are designed to interface with your armour aren't they? They made removing it quite a chore. Your entire biology is rather crude and unnatural, but these black ports connected to your inner tissues are appalling," she noted as she repaired skin damage near his chest where a lascannon wound had burned through his armour and parts of his black carapace were visible.

"They're none of your concern, Eldar," Seiras said dismissively.

The healer seemed to disapprove of his reply but said nothing as she continued. Neither one of them spoke for several minutes as she went on with her work. Seiras tried not to move or even look away much to the alien's discomfort, but she continued nonetheless. She finally spoke again after a long silence, "Your wound is already healing rapidly. My work should help to alleviate most of the process."

"Where's my armour?" Seiras asked seriously as he sat up and looked around.

"It's highly damaged, but I'll put it back on if you want," the healer replied.

"Yes…how did you even manage to remove it in the first place?" he wondered.

"You underestimate Eldar ingenuity and intelligence. Your crude power armour isn't that complicated. To be honest, I find it rather barbaric how it plugs into your body," she said distastefully.

The librarian shook his head, "I could care less what you think alien. Put it back on."

"As you say, human," she said clearly offended by his attitude.

Some time passed as Seiras watched Eldar constructs and machines reattach his upper power armour to him. Part of him was relieved to have it back on despite the large hole that the lascannon shot put through it. However, another part of him was greatly troubled by the fact that Eldar knew how to put on and take off Space marine armour.

He looked around for his helmet, and quickly realized it was attached to his armour where he usually placed it. He found it quite unsettling that the Eldar knew to put it there. That made him extremely uncomfortable. Unfortunately, his armour looked like it had seen much better days. It would take a techmarine or some mechanicus experts to fully repair all the damage it had suffered. His psychic hood was also damaged significantly much to his disdain. They were extremely difficult to repair, and he'd be better off getting a new one. As the constructs finished putting his armour back on, Seiras looked at his helmet for a moment. He decided it was probably a good idea to not to put it back on. It would likely intimidate the Eldar if they couldn't see his face.

When his armour was finally back on completely, he turned towards the alien and spoke, "You have my thanks, child."

"I am not a child! Do not insult me!" she snapped out of nowhere.

Seiras said nothing as she stared at him for a moment. As if immediately, she got over her emotional tantrum and spoke up surprised, "Gratitude? I hardly expected that after all you've said to me."

"You're not unbearable to be around at least. That's more than I can say for most Eldar. At least you know when to shut up too," Seiras shrugged.

"Is that supposed to be a compliment? You certainly have a strange way of expressing yourself. You're an unrefined brute in every way possible," she remarked shaking her head.

Before Seiras could say anything, a door opened nearby. The healer perked up seriously as she immediately addressed the arrival in her alien tongue, **"His wounds are healed, the human is conscious and calm, Farseer."**

The librarian instantly turned his gaze towards the arriving Eldar. In the doorway stood a robed Eldar farseer. She was wearing no helmet which left her golden hair and dazzling green eyes to be seen. To her sides were a Dire Avenger Exarch and several other various aspect warriors. If Seiras had to guess, they were likely the ones who found him. The farseer had an escort of several warlocks as well much to his disdain. His sense of impending danger began to rise again as he braced himself both physically and mentally.

 **"That is surprising. I half expected him to try and kill you, Irulan. Space marines are not known for tolerating our kind,"** the Dire Avenger Exarch said in the Aeldari language.

 **"He did panic at first and pin me to the wall. I thought he was going to kill me. Though fortunately, he quickly gained an understanding of the situation,"** she responded back.

The farseer spoke sternly, **"I have not seen your death anytime in the foreseeable future. I told you there was nothing to fear, Irulan. Besides, you're the one that volunteered to do it anyway."**

 **"I know mother, but you could have at least warned me that he was able to break out of those restraints. He moved faster than I could! I didn't know humans could move that fast!"** the healer, now identified as Irulan protested.

 **"Calm yourself child and let it stand as a learning experience. I let you go through this for a reason. Space marines are the most dangerous humans you'll ever encounter. Don't let their size fool you. They're larger, but faster than regular humans. Though they are crude brutes in comparison to our aspect warriors, they are almost as deadly,"** the Farseer replied calmly.

 **"I tire of your harsh lessons,"** Irulan said in the Eldar equivalent of a bratty voice.

 **"Nevertheless, child, you did heal his wounds. I'm rather surprised he let you do so in a now conscious state,"** the farseer noted.

Irulan crossed her arms, **"So am I. He's been surprisingly cooperative but is unbearably crude. May we get him out of here soon? He's making me uncomfortable with his staring."**

The aliens all turned to examine Seiras' reaction to their conversation. During their entire exchange, he remained poised, silent, and unreadable as he took in their expressions.

As far as he was aware, they had no knowledge of his insight into the Eldar language. He could learn a lot by playing stupid. Seiras maintained a cunning straight face as he spoke in Gothic, "What are you aliens talking about? Why am I here?"

"I will explain that shortly, Seiras," the farseer replied to him in Gothic.

The librarian was shocked that she knew his name but maintained a stone-faced stare at her. He quickly tried to figure out how she knew his name and assumed that his allies possibly told her...or the spirit stone did!

Reflexively, Seiras reached down towards his waist and felt the chain where the stone usually hung was no longer there. The farseer smiled knowingly at his action and spoke smugly, "Prince Kalyra has told me a lot about you, librarian. Though to be honest, I already knew about your deeds."

"What has Kalyra told you then? What do you know of me?" Seiras asked her.

"That you were involved in Taldeer's defeat on Kronus. That you have fought and killed aspect warriors from Ulthwé, Biel-tan, Saim-Hann, and Alaitoc. Kalyra even tells me that you've fought the Drukhari as well. You're no friend to us," she said conclusively.

 _'Damn that stone to the warp. I should have destroyed it when I had the chance,'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"Obviously, I'm no friend to any xenos," Seiras replied blankly. He was not going to react strongly to her goading. He knew Eldar liked to get a rise out of people's emotions.

"I would like to hear what exactly happened to Taldeer from your perspective," the farseer followed up.

"Taldeer wasn't killed on Kronus, we captured her. Kyras and several other librarians interrogated her before she died. He kept her spirit stone I believe. I was not among those present that interrogated her as I had been sent to the Deathwatch by then. Though, Lord Kyras did ask for me as I had already recovered Kalyra's spirit stone decades prior and was an expert at torturing Eldar within them." Seiras told her with blunt, stoic hate.

"Hmph, amusing response human. I half-expected you to justify your actions or condemn me in some petty way. It would seem Kalyra was right in that you were at least honest. While you are clearly no friend to us, you have done us a great service by recovering his spirit stone. The Autarch's spirit stone is priceless. Despite the atrocities you've committed, your recovery of Kalyra is something of a good deed in our eyes. Aldmorian's history shall not be lost with Kalyra now recovered. I find it curious that you kept him all these years even after he expended his usefulness to you," she said crossing her arms.

"Where is he?" Seiras asked her curiously.

The farseer eyed him with cautious interest, "Why do you care to know?"

"I guess it doesn't matter. He got his wish after all…he's back with his own kind," Seiras replied.

 **"He tells me you understand our language and that you rescued him from Typhon Primaris. A good thing you did too, because I know that planet was destroyed by the Inquisition. Kalyra spoke highly of you, Seiras. He says you've fought the Great Enemy's champions and that you are smarter than most monkeigh. Kalyra believes that you are not wholly unreasonable."** the farseer spoke her language to him.

 **"So what?"** Seiras replied in their language. Their visible faces all cringed and reacted in unusual ways to the sight of a space marine speaking the Eldar language. He imagined to them it must have been the equivalent of him seeing an animal speak gothic.

 **"A monkeigh can speak our language?!"** the Dire Avenger Exarch seemed shocked. The several surrounding warlocks all voiced similar reactions as they had laser focused glares on the librarian now.

The healer, Irulan, looked even more horrified as it implied that Seiras heard what she said earlier. Irulan looked down in embarrassment and shame as she avoided Seiras' glance.

 **"Do you know why you're alive, Seiras?"** the farseer asked him curiously.

The space marine sighed in annoyance at her, **"Don't waste my time with talk. If you're going to kill me then do it. If not, then let me go. I have no more words I wish to share with the likes of your kind."**

 **"Leave us. I would speak with him in private,"** the farseer spoke to her escort.

Several tried to protest, but they were immediately silenced by her stoic glance. With reluctance all of them left minus the Exarch and the farseer's daughter, Irulan.

 **"With all due respect, Farseer, I do not feel comfortable leaving you alone in the presence of a space marine. He may be an inferior human, but something seems off about him,"** the exarch spoke seriously.

 **"Fenarus, leave us. Gather Seiras' belongings and bring them to a transport. Wait for us there and take Irulan with you,"** the farseer ordered.

 **"As you command, Iruna..."** he said reluctantly before leaving.

Seiras watched as the exarch guided the curious Irulan out of the room. Her gaze lingered on the librarian and the farseer with desperate curiosity before the door closed.

"Nice kid you got there, Farseer Iruna," Seiras spoke to her in a dark tone, "who is the father?"

Iruna sent him a fierce glare, "Do not test my patience, human! That is none of your concern! Be thankful you didn't harm her, or I would have shattered your soul!"

"Let me guess was it that exarch? Is he the father?" Seiras goaded her.

Seiras was immediately forced to the ground by the farseer's superior psychic might. Her hands crisped with streaks of lightning as she hissed at him, "Mind your own affairs!"

The librarian forced his way back up against her psychic might but was soon met with a singing spear pointed at him, "Do not provoke me, Seiras. Kalyra told me that you fancy such tactics against others. I will not tolerate these petty mind games of yours. You will not win any argument with an Eldar."

"Of course, farseer," Seiras said as Iruna backed away and calmed down, "but why would you put her in here with me? How could you be sure I wouldn't have killed her?"

"That is not the future I have seen," she replied cryptically.

Seiras sighed, "What is the future you have seen then? Why am I alive on this ship?"

After a moment of silence, Iruna spoke in Aeldari, **"I would prefer to converse with you in my language human. Is that acceptable?"**

Seiras shook his head and replied in Gothic, "I would prefer not to. Your language gives me a headache."

"Amusing, because I feel the same way about yours. What a predicament we find ourselves in. So be it. What is the last thing you remember before waking here?" she asked.

"The last thing that I remember was getting shot by a lascannon while escaping the _Pride of the_ _Emperor_ with my allies. How did I end up on an Eldar ship?" he asked again seriously.

"Fenarus and his infiltration team found you and your allies in the hanger. I knew you would be there with Kalyra's spirit stone, which is why I sent him to board the ship in the first place. They were also there for another important mission. They were there to retrieve this..." she held up a strange looking device that Seiras didn't recognize.

"What is that?" the librarian asked confused as the farseer held it up for him to look at more closely.

"It's called a Webway Generator Remote...we use these to open the large space webways. Without a ship generator, they only open small webways. Fulgrim's fleet had one of these, and we needed to take it from him. Fenarus and his team destroyed the generator and brought back the remote. Our mission has saved billions of lives...including that of your fleet and many your own kind. More importantly, it saved many Eldar lives," the farseer elaborated.

"That doesn't explain why I'm here or how you knew I would be there. What purpose does saving me provide you? You already got the spirit stone. Why did they bring me here when they could have just taken the stone and left me to die?" he questioned suspiciously.

"I am about to tell you, Seiras. You spent decades learning our ways from Kalyra. You stand opposed to many dangerous threats to this galaxy. Necrons, Tyranids, and Chaos. You are an unusual human according to him. He believes you are dangerous...as do several other Craftworlds judging by Saim-Hann's attempt to assassinate you. Your name is also known to several farseers from what I understand. They've all seen visions of your potential futures,"the farseer lectured.

"What are you saying?"Seiras asked seriously.

"Omegon knew who you were as well. That is why he found his way into your company. Fulgrim now knows who you are as does most of his fleet. I have heard your name whispered and echoed in the warp, and so have they. Your life now holds greater value than you can possibly understand,"the farseer spoke seriously.

Against his bitter sense of pride, Seiras curiously tilted his head **,** "Are you saying Omegon infiltrated Kill Team Calamity because of me?"

"The rogue primarch's intentions are beyond understanding...but his actions were on behalf of the greater good of the galaxy. He negated one of your dark futures by stopping Fulgrim on the _Pride of the Emperor_. Had Omegon not been there...you would have been taken alive and surrendered to Chaos. Obviously, I could not allow that to happen. You cannot be allowed to fall to Chaos with the vast knowledge you have on the Aeldari. It would doom many of us,"the farseer explained.

The librarian got angry at her bold statement, "You're mistaken, witch! I would never fall to Chaos willingly! Had that traitorous bastard not been there, I would have died as is my duty!"

"Kalyra said that Fulgrim knew who your primarch is and that he was about to yell you. It's curious to think how different that would have turned out had Omegon not been there or had Arius arrived several moments later," she said deeply.

Her insight into the recent events disturbed Seiras more than he wanted to admit. The librarian maintained his bearing though.

"You know nothing of me or my future, alien,"Seiras hissed.

"I know you will fall to Chaos unless we intervene,"she explained.

"Enough! I want answers. Where are we and where are the others that were with me?"Seiras demanded.

"They are waiting in the hanger to be taken back to what's left of your Inquisitor's fleet. We informed them that we have the five of you. The Inquisitor asked about you specifically, but I told her we wouldn't turn you over until we were certain you were stable and uncorrupted," the farseer explained.

"You intend to let me go even with the risk of me falling to chaos?"Seiras asked disbelievingly.

The farseer nodded, "Yes, but I wanted to talk to you before we sent you off."

"What makes me so important to the likes of your foresight witch? What do you see of my future? Why does my potential to fall to chaos frighten you so? Surely my knowledge of your species cannot be that dangerous to you can it? And if it is, then why not simply kill me? Isn't that a much simpler solution?" Seiras asked her curiously.

"You have a very important role to play in dark days to come. You may not be very impressive as a warrior or a psyker in comparison to most. You may lack the feats of other legendary members of your kind. However, you are important because you possess a unique ability among psykers. It's psychic glamour…though we call it Soul-Bonding,"she explained.

"Soul-Bonding?" Seiras questioned confused, "I've never heard of such an ability. Is it similar to Soul-Binding?"

"Soul-bonding is rare among humans. It allows you to psychically bond your soul with others. It is similar to what your kind calls Soul-Binding except it works differently and on a weaker scale. One with this ability can subconsciously form psychic links with other beings and enchant them. Your Emperor and his primarchs all possess this ability. It is also seen among your kind's most powerful psykers. The fact that a weaker, insignificant psyker like you has this ability is extremely dangerous,"she replied.

"So, you're saying I have the ability to link my soul to others? I can see the Emperor having such a power, but I wasn't aware the primarchs had this ability,"he said disbelievingly.

"Yes, it functions in an opposite manner to the way untouchables repulse everyone near them. As its name would indicate, it allows you to enchant everyone around you by psychically projecting your soul and temporarily linking it to theirs. In other words, it's why you're able to make people like and trust you with little effort. This type of psychic glamour makes you unnaturally charismatic," she explained.

"That would explain a lot," Seiras said thinking about some of the unusual events in recent years.

Iruna shook her head, "While it may seem beneficial, this ability is a curse to a weaker being like you. It makes your soul as bright as an Aeldari soul in the warp. That makes you just as vulnerable as we are to She-Who-Thirsts and the other ruinous powers. Your primarchs who all possessed this ability did not fare well with it, which is why half of them were corrupted by Chaos Gods and they effortlessly dragged their legions with them."

Seiras looked at her confused, "Why do I possess this ability then if I'm not that powerful?"

"It's a statistical anomaly that you inherited this ability from your primarch. Only a rare few space marines have acquired it, and almost none of them were trained psykers. The plague marine Typhus of the Death Guard possesses this ability as well. You may not know this, but he fell to the whispers of Chaos long before any of his brothers or even his primarch. That is the danger of Soul-bonding. He corrupted countless others with this power and fell to the worship of the Chaos God, Nurgle. The Chaos Gods fancy this ability as it is corrupting in nature," she elaborated.

"How does this ability affect other psykers?" Seiras wondered as his mind thought about Atia's unusual behavior whenever he was around her for too long.

"It's very potent against weaker psykers, but works as a double-edged sword. It's dangerous if you psychically bond with a stronger psyker. Such a bond with a Daemon Primarch like Fulgrim, would corrupt you immeasurably because he also possesses the ability and is far more powerful than you," Iruna said grimly.

Seiras held his head in disbelief as his eyes trailed down, _'That explains why Fulgrim was able to affect me like he did.'_

"How could I have never noticed this before? I was not even aware I was doing anything." Seiras said somewhat disturbed, "What about you? Am I affecting you right now?"

Iruna shook her head, "No, you're not. I have stronger psychic will than you do so you can't affect me with this power. In actuality, I could dominate you if I cared to."

"I can see why me having this power would be concerning to your kind," Seiras said aloud as he began to understand a lot of the strange behaviors people had around him now. It was especially haunting to think about how enamored he felt around stronger psykers too.

 _'I guess Selana was right...I was manipulating people with my psychic powers. But how? Surely someone in the librarium or even an Inquisitor would have noticed this ability? That also begs the question…how was Selana more immune to my psychic glamour than Jessenta? Captain Arius is undoubtedly stronger than me. I wonder how he affected me? Was Lord Kyras aware of me having this ability? He always did show me special favor over the other librarians. Though I always did idolize him as well. This is unbelievable assuming she's telling the truth.'_ Serias thought concerned.

As his mind focused back on Kyras, he began to recall how enamored he always was in his former chapter master's presence and how he was one of Kyras' honour guards in the Ordo Psykana. He would have sided with the traitors had he not been in the Deathwatch away from his corrupted Chapter master at the time. He only helped hunt down traitors during the civil war later after hearing about Kyras' fall to Chaos. If anyone other than Davian Thule would have told him, then he wouldn't have ever believed it. That thought was somewhat haunting to him. This ability made him susceptible to the wills and influences of stronger psykers.

 _'Maybe Lord Kyras did know about it, but never told me so that I would fall to chaos with him?'_ Seiras theorized briefly as he felt a sick knot form in his stomach.

"Is there any way to negate this ability?" Seiras asked seriously.

The farseer nodded, "Yes, there are a few ways, but I doubt that you're willing to do most of them. You could wear a wear a Psionic limiter and suppress your psychic powers altogether. That would at least shield you from the chaos gods to some degree. Although, I doubt you're willing to do that seeing as how you rely on your warp abilities to fight. Staying around a stronger psyker that you trust would work as well, though it would only make you a bigger target for the great enemy and could potentially endanger them too. The most appropriate solution is to keep the company of an untouchable."

"I would rather keep the company of aliens than that of a blank," Seiras said dismissively.

"The only true boon that your ability gives you is it allows you some negative resistance to untouchables. They would weaken your powers, but you would passively negate weaker untouchables with your power. Essentially it would cancel out your power and their negative presence. I believe your Emperor had this ability on a much grander scale as he also kept the company of untouchables from what I understand. An untouchable would nullify your psychic glamour but not your powers altogether. Should you fall to Chaos, this ability of yours would give whatever warband you were a part of a dangerous advantage against opposing forces, as resistance to untouchables is a useful trait." she explained.

"If I'm such a danger to this future you've seen, then why keep me alive? What purpose does my life serve? If you are convinced that I will fall to chaos, then how does it benefit anyone to allow me to live? What is this role that I have to fulfill?" Seiras asked.

"As I said before, your life serves a greater purpose. Telling you what I know would prevent the future that must come to pass. For that reason, I will say no more. Be wary of your power, Seiras. It is a blessing and a curse. The best wisdom I can offer you is to seek the company of an untouchable before your powers draw too much attention from the warp," she concluded.

"How am I supposed to do that? Blanks are even rarer than psykers," Seiras replied shaking his head.

"One will cross your path eventually. Of that you can be certain," she said hauntingly.

Seiras felt a slight chill from her words. He detested cryptic divination and farsight. It was his least favorite among psychic disciplines as he found it depressing and stressful to know his own death or that of others. For that reason, he typically limited his investment into the discipline. It didn't stop the occasional vision here and there, but it kept his own farsight limited to short term present events.

"May I leave now?" he asked.

"Before you go, Kalyra wanted to speak with you. I will bring you to him," Iruna replied.

"I take it you put him in a wraith?" Seiras asked her as he followed Iruna out of the room. He was quick to notice several of the warlocks were waiting around outside as if they were expecting to intervene on the farseer's behalf.

Iruna said nothing to them as they followed behind Seiras and her. The librarian could practically sense the warlocks glaring holes into the back of his head. He felt extremely uneasy having his back to xenos witches but didn't have much say in the matter.

Iruna wasted no time taking him to a large open room where a number of bonesingers were busy crafting things. A large number of wraith constructs were present in the room. Most appeared to be non-functioning, but a few showed signs of life whenever the group of Eldar seers entered the room.

Seiras saw one of the constructs begin its approach to them as they walked through the large room. It was a large and prestigious wraithlord coloured in teal and white. Seiras took note of this color scheme as it was likely Iybraesil's colors.

" **Seiras, it is fortunate to see you alive,"** the Wraithlord which was obviously Kalyra spoke. His voice was ghostly and echoic leaving a psychic echo in his mind.

He stared at the wraithlord for a moment and finally responded, **"It seems you got your wish after all, Kalyra. You're back with your own kind, and I just got a lot of bad news from your friends here."**

 **"Iruna and I have already spoken at length about your situation. I actually suggested that she kill you initially, but she informed me of your…future. I was right, Seiras. The Aeldari were willing to help you,"** Kalyra responded eerily.

 **"And?"** Seiras said crossing his arms skeptically.

 **"Your suffering has only just begun, Seiras. It would have been more merciful to let you die in peace, but your survival is necessary for a day yet to come. The things I have taught you, will prove invaluable, and they will be your only salvation in the darkness,"** Kalyra said cryptically.

Seiras rolled his eyes, **"What is it with your kind and cryptic, veiled prophecies? Is there nothing you can tell me about any of this nonsense?"**

 **"There is only one thing I will tell you,"** Iruna spoke up causing everyone to focus on her and Seiras intently.

The librarian said nothing as he stared at her anxiously.

 **"She dances alone in sad depression,"** Iruna replied cryptically.

 **"What are you talking about, witch?!"** Seiras demanded.

Iruna refused to answer as she looked Seiras in the eyes, **"Sing for her, and she will dance with you."**

The librarian couldn't exactly fathom her cryptic wisdom but had a feeling it was connected to him finding a blank.

Deciding it was probably best to not dwell on the matter, Seiras simply pushed it out of his mind as he nodded.

"Am I allowed to leave this ship now?" he asked with annoyance prevalent in his voice.

"Yes, I will take you to the hanger," Iruna said calmly as she gestured for him to follow her outside the room. Unsurprisingly, the warlock entourage followed behind them.

Seiras glanced back at Kalyra one last time as he left. The warlocks all sent him death glares as he faced back, but he ignored them as his gaze briefly lingered.

"Move!" one of the warlocks practically hissed at him in gothic. Seiras didn't bother acknowledging her as he turned his gaze back forward.

Iruna glanced at him with an odd expression, "Is something wrong? You seem awfully focused on Kalyra."

"It's nothing," Seiras replied carelessly as he followed the farseer towards the hanger

As he followed her, they walked in silence for a while. Seiras took this time to memorize the layout of the ship and took note of structural aspects. He didn't even try to be subtle about it as he glanced over and saw the holo-field generator in a large open deck below their current walkway.

The same warlock from earlier quickly voiced her concern, "I know what you're doing, monkeigh! You're pathetically transparent!"

"Oh, is something bothering you, witch?" Seiras asked her with a clearly careless tone.

"You're hopelessly naïve if you think we're oblivious to your actions," she hissed back.

"You're hopelessly naïve if you think I care about anything you have to say," he countered.

"You ungrateful, monkeigh! Has it escaped your attention that WE saved your life?! The least you could do is show some respect!" the overly emotional warlock demanded.

"I have shown some respect...to Iruna," Seiras replied.

"How dare you address her by name so casually!" she shot back.

" **Calm yourself, Elaerya,"** Iruna interrupted with a commanding but calm voice.

" **Yes, farseer,"** she bowed her head briefly.

" **Yeah, Elaerya, why don't you ease off. That or you can get lost,"** Seiras taunted her.

" **Why don't you go mate with some more cultists!"** she countered.

Her response was quick to trigger Seiras' anger. He wanted to retaliate and kill this damn Xenos for daring to mention that event to him. Against his pride, he chose not to respond.

"I was rather curious when I heard about that from Kalyra. He says he did not witness it but heard of the event. I wasn't aware, Losseainn cared for such things," Iruna spoke up catching everyone's attention.

Seiras said nothing as he kept his head forward. He was beginning to realize that arguing with Eldar wasn't a very good idea in his current situation. The awkward silence continued for another few minutes before the group finally arrived at what was presumably the hanger.

Iruna broke the silence as they stopped outside of it, "Do not mistake this for kindness human, but I want you to have this."

Seiras looked at her confused as she handed him the webway generator remote.

"Why give me this?" he asked confused.

"It can open the webway for you and it contains a map should you ever find yourself there," she said with a strange knowing expression.

He would be lying if he said he wasn't completely creeped out by the Eldar farseer's unusual expression. She had this look as if she was peering into his very soul. Seiras accepted it without protest despite his reservations.

" **You're giving that to him?! Farseer, what are you doing?!"** Elaerya protested.

The blonde farseer focused on the red headed warlock, **"Begone, Elaerya. I tire of you undermining my decisions. We will speak in private later."**

The red-head's blue eyes focused intently on the farseer before she turned and left. The other warlocks were thankfully passive and quiet. Seiras didn't care much to wonder why as he focused his attention into the hanger.

As they made their way to the hanger, Iruna looked at him again, "A ship will bring you back to your Inquisitor's fleet."

"Good…I wish to leave," Seiras said deep in thought.

The two advanced through the hanger to a transport further inside where they were met with Fenarus. Much to Seiras' shock however, he also saw Selana in there as well as the three Stormtroopers that got stranded with them. Selana appeared extremely tense and uncomfortable as she sat against the transport looking around with skeptic caution.

The stormtroopers appeared relatively calm, though they were clearly bored judging by their expressions. Armed dire avengers were around to make sure they didn't do anything, but none of the humans were restrained. They were unarmed however.

All of them perked up with relief and excitement when they saw the librarian approach.

"Seiras!" Selana called out to him relieved, "thank the Emperor, you're alive!"

"He got shot with a lascannon…twice. I'm amazed that guy can walk. Astartes are crazy tough," one of the stormtroopers remarked.

"I've never been so happy to see your dumb face, Seiras," Selana exclaimed with relief as she walked over to meet him halfway.

"As I promised, your ally is unharmed," Iruna said to the Sororita.

The black-haired sister scoffed at her, "About time…a few more hours and I was about to go haul his giant ass out of here myself!"

"I see gratitude is not an attribute either you or this overgrown brute possess," Iruna said condescendingly as she looked between Seiras and Selana.

"You have my thanks, Farseer Iruna of Iybraesil," Seiras reluctantly thanked her.

She crossed her arms at his tone, "I can imagine it will take you some time to cope with what I've said."

"It will," he simply responded.

"Farewell, Seiras. We will meet again," Iruna waved as the librarian and Selana approached the transport.

He felt an unusual shiver run down his spine upon hearing those words but decided not to dwell on it as Iruna departed.

Selana shook her head at the farseer and spoke to Seiras, "What happened? What did she tell you?"

"Nothing I care to discuss right now," Seiras replied as he made his way towards the Eldar transport.

The sororita frowned at his statement but did not press the issue as she followed him. The nearby host of dire avengers all motioned for the five humans to get inside shortly afterward. All of the Eldar were armed and facing the humans whom they had sitting on the ground in the back of the transport.

As they all settled in, one of the stormtroopers shook his head in relief, "Glad we're getting out of here. These Eldar give me the creeps."

"I can't believe we're all alive…when I saw that lascannon take Seiras down, I thought it was the end…" Selana trailed off.

"Shit, when we got separated from the others, I thought we were all screwed," one of the stormtroopers added.

"We would have been if Seiras didn't stay behind…he could have teleported out," Selana said softly as she looked at the Astartes sincerely.

"We owe you, sir…" the main stormtrooper said as Seiras glanced over the four humans.

The librarian said nothing in response as he looked down.

"I'm Lieutenant Derrin Reinhardt by the way…these are my men, Sergeant Markus Trenus and Private Quintus Rex," the stormtrooper lieutenant introduced them. Their faces weren't very distinguishable as they looked like regular soldiers. The lieutenant was blonde, but the other two had short brown hair.

Seiras nodded at them to acknowledge their introduction but didn't respond beyond that. His gaze trailed towards the dire avengers on the other side of the transport who had weapons practically pointed at them.

Among them included Fenarus. The exarch caught his gaze and spoke in the Aeldari tongue, **"What is it, space marine? Why are you looking at me?"**

"Where are my weapons and other belongings?" Seiras replied in Gothic.

The exarch pulled out a large Nemesis Force Halberd and a Force Sword tucked away nearby, **"You can have these weapons back when we get there. The sword isn't very impressive, but the halberd is one of the better human weapons I have seen. The rest of your things will be deposited once you've been offloaded from this transport."**

Seiras nodded in acceptance at Fenarus' answer much to everyone else's surprise.

"Can you understand what he's saying, Seiras?" Selana asked uncertainly.

The librarian didn't answer her, but it was completely obvious to every alien and human in the transport that he could. The Dire Avengers there appeared particularly disturbed by it. If they weren't staring before, they definitely were now.

A long silence passed as Seiras kept his gaze focused on the floor and his mind deep in thought. Selana and the stormtroopers would converse about random topics to pass the time but were routinely silenced by the Eldar who found their conversations annoying.

After a considerable amount of time had passed, Derrin spoke to him, "Hey, Seiras, mind if I ask you a few questions?"

The librarian turned towards the man curiously, "What is it?"

"Why did you stay behind for us? We're a lot more expendable than a Space Marine librarian." he said seriously.

"I've been left behind before on a mission. It's not something I like to put others through," Seiras replied as he drifted to a memory of a past battle.

"Really? What happened?" Sergeant Markus asked.

"I'll tell you some other time when we're not in the company of aliens," Seiras trailed off.

"We're almost to your flagship, humans. I am hailing your vox channels now," Fenarus interrupted.

A moment later he opened communications, "This is Exarch Fenarus. We have survivors from your strike team with us."

"Land in Hanger 2…do not try anything xenos," a response came back over the vox. Seiras immediately recognized it as Admiral Hightower's voice.

Shortly thereafter, they finally landed inside of the hanger where a large force was waiting for them. It mostly consisted of guardsmen, but there were quite a few Imperial Fists, several White Templars, and even some of Seiras' Kill Team brothers.

The Stormtroopers were relieved as they immediately got off the transport. Selana got off next and was fondly greeted by several Sororitas who were also present. As Seiras began to exit, he noticed the Eldar push out a large crate of some kind containing their gear he assumed.

Fenarus handed the librarian his force sword and the nemesis force halberd as he exited. He spoke in his own language so only Seiras could understand him, **"I don't know why Iruna decided to spare an Aeldari killer like you but know this…I will not hesitate to avenge Taldeer should I ever see you again, monkeigh."**

Seiras said nothing as he blankly glared at the exarch who got back in the transport and quickly departed from the hanger.

After he was gone, Seiras felt something lift him off the ground, "Seiras, you bloody magpie! You're alive!"

He quickly realized Viggo was holding him in a bearhug. It was rather childish and bizarre to the stoic Imperial Fists and the disciplined Stormtroopers as they all remained silent watching the scene with disbelief. Most of the hanger's inhabitants began to disperse after the Eldar transport left. Servitors were quick to come and retrieve the crate that was dropped as well.

Focusing on his brothers, Seiras was surprised to see them in good condition. Viggo looked rather fine despite the injuries he suffered on the flagship. It made Seiras wonder just how long he had been on the Eldar ship.

"Seiras, praise the omnissiah you made it brother," Nemias approached next as he smiled at the librarian.

"I can hardly believe the Eldar saved ya. I'm never gonna let ya live this one down!" Viggo said with a light chuckle.

Nemias frowned as he shook his head, "The Eldar never do things without a reason…it must have been for some sinister future plot of theirs."

"How long ago did the battle end?" Seiras asked confused.

"About two days I think?" Viggo said looking at Nemias for confirmation.

The Salamander nodded, "50 standard Terran hours to be precise."

"How are the others?" Seiras asked as he looked around for Kallius.

Nemias frowned, "Kallius suffered the greatest injuries out of all of us. He and Commander Jessenta are currently in critical condition in the medbay. The Imperial Fists have their apothecaries working on him. They've been at it for a while now."

"What of the commander?" Seiras asked seriously.

"They have all the best people working on her, but she's almost as injured as Kallius," Nemias answered.

Decimus soon approached them and looked at Seiras, "It is good to see your return, Seiras. When I heard the Eldar had you, I volunteered to spearhead a recovery. The Inquisitor did not allow it. We've been wiping out residual warpspawn and daemons for the past two days."

"I take it we're stranded with the warp storms going on right now?" Seiras asked.

"Surviving navigators were relocated to the flagship, but we cannot leave the system while these storms persist. Captain Arius and the Inquisitor have been working on a solution. For now, we're heading towards one of the nearby planets to repair," the Minotaur explained.

"Where's Gregorius? Is he in stable condition?" Seiras asked.

"He is with the Chaplain Evaldus and some other Imperial Fists. They are praying I believe," the Minotaur answered.

"Oi, Seiras…so I couldn't help but notice you got a fancy new halberd," Viggo chuckled.

Nemias shook his head, "You didn't…is that a Nemesis Force halberd from one of the grey knights?"

"I figured I would put it to better use seeing as how I was alive still," Seiras explained.

Viggo laughed heartily, "You're a shameless looter, you know that?"

"I'll return it to Captain Arius," Seiras said shaking his head at their amusement.

A moment later he placed his two weapons with the other supplies for the servitors to take away.

"Sure, you will…mark my words, that weapon is going to end up in the reliquary," Viggo chuckled again.

Without humoring their joke, Seiras simply began to walk away, "I'm going to see Kallius."

"Well make sure ya hurry up with that. Her royal highness demanded that you report to her as soon as you got here," Viggo bellowed.

"Why are you acting so light-hearted right now? We just found out Nogemo was-" Seiras was interrupted mid-sentence.

"We're not allowed to talk about that, Seiras. Only the survivors from the bridge are allowed to know," Decimus interrupted him.

The librarian sighed, "Regardless then…Atia can wait. I need to go see Kallius," Seiras said as he began to walk off. He soon found the three Astartes following behind him as he departed from the hanger.

As they came upon the exit, Selana and her Sororitas quickly caught up with them. Nobody said a word as they all went straight to the ship's medbay.

 ** _Avenger of Terra_ , Medical Bay **

After a short journey through the large ship, the group finally reached their destination. Along the way, Seiras spotted a great deal of dead bodies and whatever warp filth remained.

' _I feel worse for the survivors…the Inquisition is never going to let these people live normal lives again,'_ Seiras thought as he noticed a few crew members of the ship working to clean up the mess.

As he entered the medical bay, he was quick to locate Kallius being worked on by two apothecaries. The Blood Angel was out of his armour and was chained down over all four limbs and even his head. Seiras was surprised to see a collar covering the Blood Angel's mouth. It was undoubtedly there to keep him from biting anyone.

The apothecaries immediately noticed the Kill Team. One addressed them, "His condition has not stabilized since your last visit. We have physically tended the worst of his wounds, but he's been in this wild delirium ever since he awoke. We cannot finish his surgery until he is calmed. The tranquillizers we've administered have done nothing to soothe his frenzy."

"Well that would explain the chains," Viggo noted.

"Will he live?" Nemias asked hopefully.

"That is difficult to say…whatever he's going through is not something we can fix. To be honest, I have never seen anything like this," the apothecary replied shaking his head.

Seiras approached the Blood Angel Sergeant and placed a hand on his head. The Blood Angel writhed in fury upon spotting him. As the librarian looked the Blood Angel in the eyes, he immediately knew what was wrong.

' _It's the Red Thirst…it's gotten worse in him,'_ Seiras thought to himself.

He knew about the condition thanks to his past experiences with Kallius and some of the first company Blood Angels. They made him swear to never speak of it to others, to which he honoured his word. That being said, Seiras wasn't an expert on how to soothe this condition as its span of time was very situational. Kallius' recent trauma and the betrayal of Nogemo were likely not helping the matter. There was only one way to satiate the Red Thirst…blood. Seiras only knew of one thing he could do as he had seen Kallius do it to someone when they first met.

Looking at Nemias, Seiras held up his arm, "Take off my gauntlet, Nemias."

"Why?" the techmarine asked confused.

"Just do it. Also take that collar off of him," Seiras told the apothecaries with a serious expression.

Nemias quickly removed Seiras' gauntlet with the help of his various tech attachments. As this was happening, the apothecaries eyed the librarian bewildered.

"I would advise against unbinding him, librarian. He almost bit me earlier when he awoke," one of them explained.

"Just do it…" Seiras commanded.

With reluctance, the two apothecaries exchanged doubtful looks with one another and removed Kallius' head restraints and the collar over his mouth.

The Blood Angel instantly tried to jerk upright but was held down by Seiras pushing against his head with his armoured hand. The others all watched with confusion as Seiras bit his unarmoured wrist and allowed blood to trickle out of it. Before it could coagulate, He held his bleeding wrist against the Blood Angel's mouth.

In a barbaric frenzy, Kallius bit against it and began to suck his blood. The entire scene was bizarre and somewhat disturbing to the others, but they watched in silence as this went on for about a minute.

Finally, Kallius seemed to be calming down much to their disbelief. When he was in a more passive state, Seiras pulled his arm away causing the Blood Angel to lay there in a strange stupor for a moment. Shortly afterward, the Watch Sergeant fell asleep.

Seiras could feel the effects of the blood loss, but quickly recovered as he looked over at the apothecaries, "That should calm him down. Don't let him die."

"What was that?" Nemias said shocked.

The wound quickly began to heal around Seiras' wrist and he held his arm up to Nemias expecting him to put the gauntlet back on. The techmarine took the hint and proceeded to do so, but had a bewildered look on his face.

"That was…strange," Viggo said trailing off, "giving him blood calmed him down? I guess that's why they call them Blood Angels eh?"

"I saw a blood angel do that to one of his brothers once. I figured it would work," Seiras told half the truth. He didn't want to explain the Red Thirst to them, and assumed his explanation was valid enough while still maintaining the secret.

The main apothecary looked at the librarian curiously, "We will contact you if his condition improves. We have your vox channel."

"I guess that's that, then," Nemias said looking at the librarian's fully armoured arm again, "You ready to go see the Inquisitor, Seiras?"

"Yes, we might as well get that over with," Seiras sighed as they left Kallius' operating room.

Upon exiting, Selana approached Seiras, "Can I speak to you in private, brother?"

The librarian looked at his Deathwatch brothers who all had curious expressions before nodding, "Sure. Go on without me brothers, I'll meet you up there."

"There he goes again," Viggo snickered to Nemias.

"Haha," Nemias chuckled in amusement.

Decimus spoke sternly, "Do not delay, Seiras. Atia is not in a good mood right now."

"I'll be right along," he said as the three Astartes departed.

After they left, Selana guided him into Jessenta's room where she was lying on a bed with countless medical devices attached to her. There was nobody else in the room which led Seiras to believe that she was in stable condition. Finally, alone with Selana, he spoke, "What is it?"

"What did that witch tell you? She seemed awfully friendly. Why?" Selana asked.

"She said I was in danger of falling to Chaos and that I…" Seiras trailed off not really sure if he wanted to tell the Sororita about his soul-bonding ability.

"You what?!" she almost demanded.

"That I am capable of corrupting all of you as well," Seiras decided not to tell her the whole truth.

Selana frowned, "Hardly surprising. Are you…okay, Seiras? I mean not many Astartes or people in general handle exposure to Chaos very well. Do you actually feel any corruption?"

"What if I said yes? Would you kill me for heresy?" he asked.

"I owe you my life…for whatever that's worth. So obviously I wouldn't if I didn't have to. Why did you stay behind anyway? I've been nothing but rude to you ever since we met. If it were Jessenta I could understand…but why stay behind for me?" Selana asked distantly.

"Don't dwell on it. Like I said, I've been left behind on a mission before. It's not something I like to do to others if I have the power not to," he answered.

"I suppose that makes sense. Whatever your reason…I appreciate it. Perhaps I was a bit harsh with you. Though given recent events, I fear for your soul," she said sadly.

"Do you know where I can find a blank?" Seiras changed the subject and asked her.

"A blank? You mean a pariah? You're more likely to run into a daemon prince than a pariah. Why do you ask?" Selana said interested.

"I want to keep my psychic presence down for a while. To silence the warp until I can purify myself," Seiras told her.

"Don't blanks harm psykers just with their presence? You're out of your mind if you willingly want to go near one as a librarian," she said disbelievingly.

"Do you know where I can find one or not?" he said annoyed.

Selana nodded, "The Inquisition usually keeps a few as witch-hunters or Inquisitorial bodyguards. The Ordo Hereticus has the most I believe. The Officio Assassinorum employs assassins who are blanks as well. Though I highly doubt you would ever want to go near a Culexus Assassin. Other than that, I don't know of any that you could easily find."

"Perhaps the Inquisitor would know," Seiras said aloud.

"If you tell her you're corrupted by Chaos or are in danger of it, she'll kill you. One of my sisters' informants on the bridge told her that Atia had apparently ordered Captain Arius to kill you if you showed signs of corruption. For your own sake, I would suggest you keep things on a need to know basis," Selana warned him.

Seiras looked at her confused, "That's odd coming from you. I would have expected you to be the first to condemn me and celebrate my execution."

"As much as I would like to see this issue as black and white, I can't. You've never once faltered in your loyalty. This mission would have been doomed if you weren't here. While I don't excuse your heresy, I respect you. If finding a blank will fix whatever's wrong with you, then I would be more than willing to help in any way I can," Selana responded.

"Well, we'll speak of it more later. I shouldn't keep Atia waiting," Seiras said with a sigh.

' _I'm affecting Selana with psychic glamour…there's no way she's had a change of heart all of a sudden. This ability is wrong…how can I trust anyone's sincerity or loyalty anymore?'_ Seiras began to contemplate as he left the room.

 **The Bridge, _Avenger of Terra_ **

Despite what he told Selana, Seiras took his time getting to the bridge. He was not in any hurry to explain things to Atia and was already dreading the inevitable accusations of corruption and heresy.

As he walked onto the bridge, he was surprised to see it mostly empty. Several Imperial Fist Astartes were in there as well as their Chaplain Evaldus. All of Kill Team Calamity minus Kallius and Nogemo were also present. None of the Sororitas were present, but a few stormtroopers and high ranking naval officers stood at the center of the bridge where Inquisitor Atia was.

The moment Seiras came into their line of sight, everyone's attention turned towards him. Nobody said a word as he walked towards Atia which led Seiras to suspect the worst.

"You're alive, Seiras…that is good news. Unfortunately, it's the only good news I've received in the past two days You're just in time. We were all waiting on you," Atia broke the long awkward silence.

"We have much to discuss about what happened with Fulgrim," Captain Arius spoke up as his eyes trailed on Seiras.

"Can we truly trust him?! Seiras was in the company of aliens for two standard days!" Gregorius immediately voiced his concern.

It was not surprising that the Black Templar was highly suspicious. Seiras couldn't even blame him sadly. He had every reason to be concerned as they were all still in shock from what happened aboard Fulgrim's ship and even more so by the Eldar showing up out of nowhere.

Nemias and Viggo were in a good mood in the hanger, but they didn't look too amused or light-hearted now as compared to when Seiras saw them earlier.

All of his Kill Team brothers had strange expressions on their faces as if they wanted to say something but couldn't.

"Why did the Eldar save you, Seiras?" Atia asked him skeptically.

"I don't know, Inquisitor. They are not an easy xenos race to understand. For all I know, they saved me because of some cryptic prophecy a thousand years from now. Understanding their motives is a futile effort, even for the xenos experts I've worked with," he replied with a calm stoic expression.

His answer wasn't exactly a lie, but it was vague enough to conveniently deflect the question.

"Yet, you're supposedly an expert on Eldar…how convenient that they showed up. According to Chaplain Evaldus, your Kill Team brother Nogemo claimed to have brought them here to stop Fulgrim. Or should I refer to him as Alpharius…his true name," Atia said eyeing him with suspicious doubt.

"Actually, he told Fulgrim he was Omegon…the other twin," Seiras corrected her.

"Wait…the Alpha Legion has two primarchs?" Nemias interrupted confused.

Seiras nodded, "Alpharius and Omegon. It's not common knowledge but they were twin primarchs."

"Why am I not surprised that he knows that?" Gregorius said with a fierce glare directed at Seiras.

"Regardless of which one it was, I have eyewitness testimonies claiming that you and he spoke in private before the mission. Their reports tell me you two spoke in the mess hall. It's all rather convenient isn't it. Were you aware that he was a primarch?!" Atia demanded.

"How could I have known? None of us saw it coming. Nogemo had been with us for nearly ten years now," Seiras said shaking his head.

"Inquisitor, explain to me how a traitor primarch managed to infiltrate a Deathwatch Kill Team and avoid suspicion. Is the Inquisition getting lazy in their screening of new members now?!" Evaldus demanded.

"His infiltration is folly of the Ordo Xenos, NOT the Ordo Malleus! He would have never slipped through our vigilance." Atia countered.

"Yet he did here…this reflects everyone's failure as a whole," Evaldus said clearly disgusted.

Arius interrupted to defend the Inquisitor, "To be fair, the Alpha Legion is notorious for infiltration, stealth, and subterfuge. Seeing as how he was a primarch, his godly abilities would give him a considerable advantage over us."

"I knew something was wrong with him. Astartes aren't that large in standard power armour. Besides, he always looked like he wasn't trying," Gregorius said exhaling a hateful remark.

"The real failure to detect him falls upon his Kill Team in my opinion. They served years with him and were blindly trusting of a Blackshield. The librarian Seiras is at fault for not detecting this sooner," the other surviving grey knight spoke up.

Gregorius shot the Grey Knight a death glare, "What did you just say?! This isn't our fault!"

"We never should have brought in Deathwatch to help in this mission. You're better off killing orks…not daemons or traitors," the Grey Knight responded.

Viggo shook his head finally unable to restrain himself any longer, "Oi why don't you shut your mouth, Grey Knight! If it wasn't for that traitorous bastard being there, we all would have died! The Ordo Malleus are a bunch of sodding, backstabbing hypocrites! Don't badmouth my Kill Team or Seiras!"

"Stand down, Space Wolf," the Grey Knight said threateningly as he raised his Nemesis Force Sword and glared at Viggo.

"Oh, just try it!" Viggo growled as his lightning claws ignited in a crackling hiss.

"Stand down, brother Regulus. We cannot blame them for the deaths of our brothers," Arius told the other Grey Knight.

Every Astartes in the room reached for their weapons as the Grey Knight and the Space Wolf were about to charge one another. Before they had a chance, Decimus forced Viggo's clawed arm down and Arius blocked Regulus.

The Imperial Fists all watched with silent anticipation with their weapons readied in case they had to respond.

Evaldus quickly calmed the scene when he shouted loudly, "Stand down! Cease this childish argument at once!"

Viggo finally calmed himself as he spit on the deck, "Don't you ever insult us again, or I swear by Russ I'll shove these claws up your ass!"

"Be silent, all of you!" Atia interrupted angrily.

Regulus, the Grey Knight, didn't say anything in response as all the Astartes were forced back into silence.

Seiras broke the following silence with a calm tone, "Honestly, we all should have been more vigilant. Regulus is right though…I personally should have been more aware. I knew Nogemo was from the Alpha Legion, but I never suspected he could be a primarch. This is my failure."

"Brother Regulus speaks out of anger, Seiras…this is nobody's fault. This disaster of a mission was simply an unfortunate turn of events. The fact that we even survived it is a miracle," Arius spoke up alleviating some of the tension.

"Things could have ended up much worse, but at least we saved the Sub-sector from the Chaos fleet. Omegon is gone now, but so is Fulgrim. Our mission was a success. Albeit one of great cost, but a victory nonetheless. Sub-sector Justicar stands," Seiras followed up calming everyone down.

"With that matter settled, there is something else I want to address with you, Seiras. Arius tells me that you were using Doombolts against Fulgrim. He says it was unintentional, but that is a chaotic warp power. We have every reason to believe you're suffering warp corruption," Atia said grimly. Her face was plastered with a serious look.

"If that were true Inquisitor, then why would the Eldar let me live? They have no remorse for the ruinous powers and those corrupted by them. If they feared my corruption, they would have killed me," Seiras reasoned calmly.

"Relax, Seiras. I am not accusing you of anything, but I will not ignore this potential issue. You piloted the ship for a week straight in the navigation chamber and then fought a battle against a daemonic host. It's hardly surprising that you're unstable with warp energy. For that reason, I'm assigning Captain Arius to watch over you for a while. If you're stable in a few days and he if he ensures me you're fine, then I'll allow you freedom again," she explained.

"Yes, Inquisitor," he said nodding.

"Since we're all here, this is probably the best time to ask. What do we do now, Inquisitor? With the warpstorms going on, we won't be able to leave this system for a while," Admiral Hightower asked.

"Maintain the fleet's course to the hive world Corun, Admiral Hightower," Atia commanded.

Evaldus looked disgusted as his face glanced at the nearby map, "An Imperial hive world? What purpose would going there serve?"

"Corun is a wealthy planet. We can resupply and repair in orbit. They lack a large void station, but their shipyards should suffice in repairing our fleet," Atia explained.

"I doubt they'll look kindly upon our arrival. Corun is filled with nobles and aristocrats," the fleet commissar said shaking his head.

"They won't have a choice," Atia replied with a stalwart grin.

"We have no idea how long the warpstorms are going to last. We could be stuck in this sub-sector for years. Resupplying is essential. Not to mention, we just saved this sub-sector. I'm certain the aristocrats will be accommodating even without the Inquisitor's authority," Admiral Hightower added.

"We can't be certain of how long Fulgrim's fleet was here. What if he's already corrupted the system?" Evaldus asked.

"Then we'll purge it. While we're stranded in the system we should identify potential heretics and snuff them out," she said conclusively.

Evaldus nodded in approval.

Arius looked at Atia a moment later, "I would advise we psychically screen every survivor before allowing them onto the planet. One potential person corrupted by chaos could cause great harm to Corun."

"We will ensure everyone is stable," Atia remarked as her gaze lingered on Seiras.

Admiral Hightower sighed, "I should probably gather an estimate on our survivors. For now I'll ensure nobody leaves the fleet without express authority."

"Very good admiral. You're all dismissed!" Atia waved.

Everyone immediately departed afterward. As Seiras attempted to follow his Kill Team off the bridge, he was stopped by Atia.

She looked up at him seriously, "Seiras, you're being relocated to our quarters up here. It will make keeping an eye on you more convenient for Arius and myself," Atia said to the librarian.

"I need to get my armour repaired," the Blood Raven protested.

She rolled her eyes, "Have your techmarine come to retrieve it from you later then. I don't want you leaving the bridge. You can stay in the room next to mine."

"Yes, Inquisitor," Seiras nodded. He was already starting to curse his survival. Nothing good would come of his proximity to Atia.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Alright, there's chapter 8 for you guys. If you're still reading, then kudos. This is kind of a casual fun story for me to write, so I wouldn't expect any kind of committed updates on a regular basis. That being said, I still enjoy this wild heretical ride, and hopefully you do too.

Things were a lot milder this chapter than some of you were probably expecting. We learned a bit about Seiras' unusual influence through psychic glamour. It's a bit of a chad power, but it has its downsides, which Seiras was quick to realize this chapter. How will it effect him later on? How will his search for a blank pan out? And why were the Eldar so nonchalant about letting him go? Those questions will be answered in due time.

Stay tuned for the next few chapters though. The Dark Eldar are coming soon.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Reflection**

 _ **Avenger of Terra**_ **, Seiras' Quarters**

Sitting quietly in his quarters, the Blood Raven was somewhat uneasy about being alone. The various Grey Knights all had separate rooms near the command deck, and he was now confined to one of them. Though nobody actually said it to him, Seiras knew he was being kept captive on the bridge with the two surviving Grey Knights and the Inquisitor to watch him.

Part of him understood why they had to do it. Having been through a great deal of exposure to chaotic powers recently, he actually felt some comfort in knowing that they were keeping a vigilant watch over him. What he found strange however was the fact that Atia hadn't bothered to kill him.

Seiras was by no means an expert on the Ordo Malleus and how it operated, but he knew that they were not tolerant in the slightest over matters of heresy and potential corruption. He found it bewildering that Atia hadn't condemned him yet. Part of it might have been due to his unusual power, but there was also the possibility that she knew the rest of his Kill Team would mutiny if she tried. Viggo made it pretty obvious that he had no qualms about killing the Grey Knights if he had to. Seiras took some comfort in knowing his Deathwatch brothers still had his back…minus Gregorius. Although despite his opinion of Seiras, the Black Templar obviously hated Atia, and would likely not support her if she turned on their Kill Team.

During his recent confinement, Seiras had trouble sleeping as he usually did. Nevertheless, the weariness had eventually caught up to him and he did manage to get some much-needed rest during his time in isolation. Currently however, he was not in his power armour…and that always made him uncomfortable. Atia had allowed Nemias to retrieve it for repairs, which left Seiras wearing his simple clothing.

He spent a lot of his time in this isolation meditating and praying in the hopes of clearing his mind of its recent taint. Between his prayers, the Blood Raven reflected on the horrendous things that had occurred since joining up with Atia's fleet. A huge part of him regretted being involved in this mission at all, but at the same time he was almost amazed by the sheer luck he had. He had met not one, but two primarchs. Even though they were both traitors, a small part of him was still amazed that he had bore witness to such amazing beings. They were the Emperor's own sons. Their words and faces echoed and radiated in his mind still.

Fulgrim was as beautiful, skilled, and lethal as all the tales claimed. Even his voice was almost narcotic to hear. The fact that Seiras had survived a battle against a primarch of Fulgrim's infamy was near unbelievable. Omegon was also a point of anger and amazement. He hated Nogemo for betraying them and being an undercover traitor all along, but the sheer fact that they were part of a primarch's company for several years was unbelievable. He found it unusual how nobody had ever noticed. Seiras always thought Nogemo or Omegon to be a very mysterious, but interesting Astartes.

Looking back on all of their time spent together, Seiras almost felt stupid for not being able to tell that Nogemo was a primarch. His size should have been a dead giveaway, but Seiras never considered the possibility that he could be a primarch. Omegon had always been competent, but he was never tiers above the rest of them. Was he simply holding back and pretending to be weaker the entire time? As Gregorius had stated, Omegon never looked like he was trying very hard. Seiras always sensed a calmness about Nogemo even when the rest of them were on edge. The librarian felt foolish for not realizing that fact when Gregorius did.

One thing was undeniable though…Seiras could fully understand why Nogemo received just as much attention as he himself did. Even though Omegon was one of the Alpha Legion primarchs, and was masterful at subterfuge, he could not suppress his psychic glamour. Omegon must have been aware of Seiras having it too as the primarch had an unusual liking for him and vice versa. Seiras had no idea why his life mattered to the Alpha Legion primarch, and he spent a great deal of his recent isolation thinking about Omegon's conversation with him in the mess hall.

' _I never turned my back on the Emperor…only on the hypocrisy of the Imperium…I'm here because I'm a disgraced angel. I failed humanity and I failed the Emperor. The Alpha Legion has ultimately abandoned what it set out to be, and I chose to spend the remainder of my life atoning for the things I've done…'_ Omegon's words rang through Seiras' mind as he tried to make sense of the primarch's motives.

Part of him believed it was all one big farce to deceive him, but Omegon did seem genuine when he said those words. He also saved the rest of them from Fulgrim when he had no real reason to do so. In addition to which, he potentially prevented the librarian from being captured by Chaos marines. If Iruna's foresight was true, then Fulgrim likely wouldn't have killed Seiras. The librarian shuddered to think what Fulgrim would have done to him had Omegon not been there.

' _This mission will forever scar my honour and my purity. I never imagined in all my years that I would be susceptible to chaos and heresy like this. I wholeheartedly condemned Avitus, Lord Kyras, and so many of the others for their fall to chaos, but here I am displaying that very same hypocrisy. What's even worse is I'm responsible. Jessenta never would have committed such an impure act with me if it wasn't for this psychic glamour that I supposedly have. The Eldar farseer was right…I have the power to easily corrupt my allies. I must remain uncorrupted for the sake of the others lest I lead them into darkness. My mind will be as a fortress, and my heart a vault. I will cast away these impurities or I will find somewhere to make a last stand and die. I can't end up like the others,'_ he thought deeply.

His thoughts were interrupted as a loud metal sound caught his attention. He turned around as someone entered his new quarters. It was none other than Atia. She was currently unaccompanied much to his discomfort. He hated being alone with her…especially now that he knew what it could lead to.

Seiras stared at her passively as she closed the door behind herself and faced him. The Inquisitor took a deep breath and sighed, "I finally got a moment of peace. Everyone's been grinding me nonstop ever since the battle ended."

"Their concern is understandable. You are in charge here and we're in need of guidance," Seiras replied stoically.

Atia nodded, "Of course, I understand that, but I tire of dealing with all the post chaos exposure. I've settled most matters, which finally gives me time to speak with you in private. I want to get a gauge on your mental state right now."

"I take it you were saving the worst problem for last?" Seiras replied as Atia walked up next to him and sat down on a chair in the room. He was currently seated on the ground where he had been praying.

"Definitely the worst…but also the one I'm most concerned about," she replied.

"Well, go ahead and speak your mind Inquisitor. Let's get this interrogation underway," the librarian said with a blank face.

"I'm most curious about your corruption. Arius believes Fulgrim did something to you during your encounter with him. He spoke of how you got separated from the others at one point during the conflict and how Fulgrim put you in a daze of some kind. Explain what happened to me," Atia said seriously.

Seiras thought about telling Atia of the strange music he heard when the noise marines subdued him, but quickly changed his mind. The last thing he needed was for Atia to think he was susceptible to daemonic voices.

"After I rushed ahead to kill the Noise Marine leader, Fulgrim appeared and they all stopped attacking me. He easily recognized me from our Vox conversation, and attempted to speak with me," Seiras answered.

Atia rose a brow skeptically, "Is that right?" What exactly did he say that put you in daze?"

"He asked about my chapter…and said he knew who my primarch was," Seiras said slowly.

The Inquisitor sent a sharp glare at him, "And?"

"Arius and the others arrived before he could tell me. I wouldn't have believed him anyway. He claimed that the Red Scorpions chapter were gene-sons of his and that the Minotaurs' primarch was Angron the Red Angel. There's no truth in his venomous words. I don't believe in anything he said about the primarchs, the Emperor, or the Astartes. He is a daemon and a traitor. His words mean nothing," the librarian continued.

"The Red Scorpions? I've heard of them. They're a secretive uptight chapter if I recall. Aren't they Ultramarine successors?" Atia said curiously.

Seiras nodded, "I've met a few before as well. They're very stringent and meticulous. They also follow the Codex Astartes obsessively. I have no idea who their primarch is, but I have no reason to believe it isn't Guilliman. Ultramarine successors treat the Codex Astartes as sacred law. My chapter always saw it as more of a guideline."

"Hmm…interesting. I'll have to look into that at some point. As for the Minotaurs being World Eater successors, I highly doubt that. Their chapter is in very good standing with Terra from what I understand. I'm no expert on the history of the Astartes, but I'm fairly positive that the High Lords wouldn't want the gene-sons of a traitor working for them," Atia remarked shaking her head.

"Like I said, Inquisitor…there's no way that it's true. Fulgrim was just trying to corrupt me and fill my mind with doubts," Seiras replied with a sigh.

"Regardless, I don't think the situation with Fulgrim is entirely responsible for what happened to you. The others all appear fine more or less. I believe there's something else going on with you that started all of this. Even before all this mayhem, you were acting strange. You told me that you committed heresy to earn the trust of those cultists before the battle. What exactly did that entail?" she said with a low, dangerous voice.

"The…witch Navigator, Amelia. She had unusual psychic powers that weren't natural for her kind. In fact, I'd call them impossible," Seiras began.

Atia kept a laser focused stare on him as she interrupted, "I've never seen a Navigator that was a chaos sorceress before. I wasn't even aware they could use psychic powers in such a way. The fact that one was susceptible to it is a matter of grave concern to me. I'll have to personally approve each one in the fleet now."

"Understandably so, Inquisitor. She was a high priestess of Slaanesh according to her own account. It's strange that she could hide in plain sight and suppress mutations. To clear the matter up, I'll tell you exactly what happened. Commander Jessenta told me to infiltrate their hidden cult onboard the ship. She justified my involvement by explaining that they would be more willing to trust me because you and I did not get along. The cultists believed I could potentially be swayed. I went along with their delusions in order to uncover their plots. Unfortunately, before they trusted me I had to do a Rite of Initiation." Seiras told the truth.

Atia's eyes got wide and filled with deadly judgment as she crossed her arms. She shook her head, "What did you have to do?"

"It was a pleasure cult, Inquisitor…I had to endure indignities with the witch and some of her followers in order to earn their trust," Seiras explained vaguely.

"Indignities? Did you…have sex with them?" she hissed in disbelief.

Seiras nodded, "Yes…but not by choice. I didn't think things would come to that when I went there to receive the initiation. I explained to the witch that I could not experience sexual desire like regular humans do. She…did something to me that revoked my conditioning and hypnotherapy. I believe it is the root of my recent corruption Inquisitor. The moment I knew of their plans, I called in Commander Jessenta and we wiped them all out."

"That explains a lot. Though I find it insane that the Sororitas would ever encourage heresy for the sake of rooting it out. Canoness Jessenta is a hypocrite if I've ever seen one," Atia said shaking her head.

"She believed that the cultists would never expect it and sought to use an unconventional tactic. In hindsight I regret taking part in it, but I wonder how well our fleet would have fared with those heretics sabotaging us from within. Canoness Jessenta's plan worked in the end, but it came with unfortunate side effects. I've been working on dealing with it," Seiras stated with a calm demeanor.

"I take it one of those side-effects is you finding me attractive?" Atia inquired knowingly.

The librarian shrugged, "I wouldn't say I'm attracted to you in such a way, Inquisitor. These new feelings I have are simply distracting and I haven't figured out how to repress them yet."

"So, you're like a boy going through puberty right now?" Atia couldn't help but chuckle.

Seiras gave her a blank look, "I suppose that might be comparable."

"It makes perfect sense now. I mean you sure did get an eyeful of my ass every time you got the chance. Though I digress. This is all rather disturbing news." Atia leaned back and closed her eyes for a moment.

"This waiting is becoming unbearable. What is to be my punishment, Inquisitor? Death?" Seiras asked with a non-urgent tone.

Atia looked at him for a moment and shook her head, "No, I would prefer not to unless I have no choice. There is something about the way you describe everything that makes me believe your intentions are pure. Not to mention, many of the survivors have also spoken up in your defense including Captain Arius, several of the Sororitas, and even my own Tempestus Scions."

"Really? What did they say?" Seiras wondered.

"For starters, the Sororitas insist on your loyalty. The 2nd in command sister, Selana Nightgale informed me that you remained behind to save her. Not to mention the Canoness Commander Jessenta Silvina also lied to protect you. The sisters might be a bunch of rabid bolter bitches, but they're not traitors or heretics in any way. The fact that you're in good standing with them speaks volumes about the situation. If the Sororitas trust you, then I would be foolish to assume you're a heretic or beyond any hope of purifying."

"I should count myself lucky then," Seiras replied calmly.

"Captain Arius also vouched for your integrity during the mission. I had actually ordered him to kill you if you showed signs of corruption. So far, he feels it is unnecessary. He also brought up some good points about the value of your life. You saved this ship and its crew when you piloted us through the warp after our navigators all died. I've never heard of a space marine navigating before, but it was an impressive feat. I would have thanked you for it sooner, but I'm glad I get the chance now…so thank you, Seiras. Whether anyone else realizes it or not, you saved this ship and everyone aboard it," Atia responded with a reassuring tone.

"I suppose I did…" Seiras thought aloud. The concept hadn't even crossed his mind yet. He didn't even think about that. Nobody else had even mentioned it either as they were immediately deployed to fight Fulgrim after arriving.

"And finally, Lieutenant Derrin Reinhardt also said that you refused to leave them behind, and that no traitor or heretic would ever risk his life for others in such a way. It's doubly impactful considering you're an Astartes and they're humans. I must admit…I find it rather noble that you stayed to help them. You always continue to surprise me." Atia concluded.

Seiras nodded passively. Inwardly he was relieved, but he kept his calm composure as he looked her in the eyes again, "What do you think we should do about my situation then, Inquisitor Atia?"

"If the warp corruption can be purified, and you remain loyal, then you should be fine. I just don't want to see any mutations or daemonic influence. So long as that stays away, then I'll grant you reprieve. Though don't expect me to lighten up in my vigilance," Atia explained.

"Of course, Inquisitor. Perhaps if I'm fortunate, the purging of this warp taint can also purify me of distracting sexual desire and attraction. I cannot remove them of my own will for some reason," Seiras replied.

"There's nothing wrong with those things…assuming they're with people who aren't heretics. I don't know how Astartes view such acts, but it's not immoral to be attracted to someone," Atia said slowly.

Seiras eyed her curiously, "I don't know Inquisitor…I find such things very distracting and problematic. I can see why the Emperor removed these feelings from Astartes. It is a weakness that normal humans possess which is easily exploitable."

"Yet regular humans live and fight just fine with it. Emotions and desires can make one weak…but they also make you stronger. How can one know courage without knowing fear? How can one protect and care for others when they don't understand love or empathy? Those things are the essence of the human spirit. You are a human, Seiras. An oversized transhuman killing machine…but a human nonetheless. I don't see some glamorous warrior angel before me right now. I see a man that wants to live up to a noble purpose in life. All of these endless wars and suffering don't mean anything unless you understand what you're fighting for. You might be a weapon for mankind, but you're also a man." she explained.

Seiras looked at her uncertainly and did not respond. He found her logic strange as it seemed to contradict her former statements to him back outside of the mess hall. Nevertheless, he gave it no more thought as her opinion on Astartes really didn't matter to him.

"Forgive my curiosity, but since we're on this topic…how does an Astartes even have sex? I always just assumed you were castrated." Atia changed the subject after a brief silence.

Seiras glanced at her with a troubled face, "We are chem-gelded and conditioned into asexuality. Some are castrated, and others aren't. It all just depends on the chapter's apothecaries. Usually the gene-seed does not override or substitute the hormonal effects of testosterone. Because of this, some apothecaries are hesitant about removing our sexual organs as it removes our testosterone. Doing so nullifies aggression and rage by a noticeable margin and so they typically won't castrate us."

"When space marines grow larger in their gene-seed implantation, do your reproductive organs grow as well?" Atia asked with a curious expression.

The topic was abhorrently distasteful, but Seiras was at least thankful there wasn't a crowd this time. He nodded with stoic patience, "Yes…every tissue in our body grows during gene-seed implantation."

"Hmm…that's rather interesting. I've always wondered about that, but it seemed so inappropriate to ask," Atia replied.

"It is inappropriate to ask, but seeing as how you're an inquisitor, you have that right," Seiras said bluntly.

"So how was it for you? The sex I mean?" Atia followed up.

"It was mentally unpleasant and physically strange. Considering the biological disparity between human females and Astartes, I believed the act to be wholly unnatural and depraved. Perhaps it was simply their own hedonistic perversion, but I found mating with them to be an unholy experience."

Atia's eyes glanced over Seiras' body, "I'm sure they probably enjoyed it. To be honest, I'm amazed you didn't kill them in the act."

"I would prefer never to speak of that encounter again. Death is a better alternative," he followed up dismissively.

"Did you and Commander Jessenta get intimate as well? She was quite worried about you during the week you spent in the Navigation Chamber. You two seem awfully close considering that she's willing to lie for you. That and you also claim the two of you kissed as well," Atia deduced.

"Yes, we did." Seiras admitted.

"You did what? Kissed or…something more?" Atia's voice trailed creepily as if taunting Seiras to tell the truth.

The librarian looked her in the eyes with a solid and stoic expression, "Does it really matter?"

"I suppose not…though now I can see the whole picture. Hahahaha! You know it's funny, when I first met her all I could think was, ' _This angry power-tripping bitch needs to get laid.'_ Never in a million years did I imagine she'd go for a space marine. Leave it to a sister! Let me guess, she said it was some kind of holy act?" Atia laughed.

Seiras found her outburst of laughter somewhat unsettling and random as he kept his composure. The librarian looked at her confused, "I don't understand the joke."

"I just find it funny, Seiras. I tried to imagine the two of you and…hahaha!" she burst into laughter again.

Seiras was now extremely uncomfortable and embarrassed as he endured Atia's laughter in silence.

Finally, she stopped laughing as she walked over towards the Astartes. Seiras was still sitting on the ground which allowed Atia to grab a handful of his hair. She looked at it for a moment as she ran her hand through his locks.

"What are you doing?" Seiras asked alarmed as he pushed her hand away.

"I can't blame her though…you're pretty good looking for an Astartes. Though I'm sure you know that by now," Atia said with a chuckle.

Seiras glared at her coldly, "Don't touch my hair."

"Has your hair always been this silvery white color?" she asked ignoring his attitude.

"No…my hair was black a long time ago…black like my mother's," he said distantly as he recalled the image with perfect clarity. His childhood was something he rarely ever gave thought to.

Atia perked up with interest as she sat down across from him, "You remember your mother? Don't Astartes get their minds wiped during indoctrination to their chapters?"

"It's nearly impossible to mind wipe Blood Ravens. We have perfect memories due to a gene-seed defect in our Catalepsean Node. Our gene-seed also creates a lot of psykers as well…so it's rather impractical to attempt mind-wiping recruits," Seiras explained.

"How is perfect memory a defect?" she asked confused.

"I can't sleep the way humans do…it's impossible for me to fully enter R.E.M. sleep. Blood Ravens will literally sleep awake. Me being a librarian also doesn't help in that regard," Seiras replied.

Atia looked at him shocked, "You…don't sleep? That does seem rather troubling. And your chapter's gene-seed also produces a lot of psykers?"

The librarian nodded, "Many in fact. It'll even make a non-psychic recruit into a psyker on occasion. Sometimes standard battle-brothers will develop psychic abilities later in their lives as well. I knew one brother…Jensus who experienced such a transformation. I knew a devastator in the 6th company that did as well. Librarians are abundant within the Blood Ravens. Our chapter has always had a lot of psykers…so we hold them in higher regard than most Astartes do."

"That is most unusual for a space marine chapter. Though Arius mentioned something about the Blood Ravens being a powerful chapter. I believe he has history with the Blood Ravens. That might explain why he's trusting of you," Atia said with a hand on her chin.

Seiras simply stared at her and said nothing.

After a brief pause, Atia spoke again, "This has got me interested now. Since you remember it, tell me about your past, Seiras."

"Why?" he asked uncertainly.

"Because I'm not in a hurry to go back out there and deal with everyone yet. Besides, it's not often one gets the chance to ask a space marine all these personal questions," she answered.

"Fine…what do you want to know?" he sighed.

"Tell me about your family and your childhood," she responded immediately with anxious curiosity.

"My family didn't have a surname or family name as we were from a desert tribe on Calderis, but my mother's name was Seirena. She was a shaman. My father's name was Kiris. He was a tribal warrior and was the younger brother to our Shah…which most people would call a chieftain. My parents were prominent figures in my tribe…especially my mother. She was our tribe's seer and healer. As you might expect, she was a psyker…though I didn't really understand that when I was a boy. Growing up in the savage deserts of Calderis, I never understood normal human civilization…even after becoming a space marine I still don't," Seiras began.

The Inquisitor cocked her head at him surprised, "You were born in the middle of some savage desert tribe? Were you an only child?"

Seiras shook his head, "No, I had four sisters. One older and three younger. I also had many cousins. Our home was near the north pole of the planet in a rocky oasis city called, Alaseirian. We had some technology such as vehicles, water harvesters, and the like…but only things we needed to survive. We had no material comforts, vids, or anything you might consider remotely civilized. My mother was our spiritual leader, and when I was younger, she would tell me stories about the Imperium of Man. About how our world was one of millions, and that all of them were a part of a much greater whole. She would tell me that our world was protected by the God-Emperor of Mankind and that his mighty angels watched all of humanity from the heavens. As a child it seemed like an impossible story told to make me feel safe against raving ork bands and the howling monsters I would hear at night. I never believed that space marines were actually angels, even despite the fervent belief my tribe had for the Emperor and his angels of death."

"So how did you become a Space Marine then?" Atia wondered.

"As I got older, I started to develop psychic powers," Seiras trailed off for a moment.

Atia looked at him and shrugged, "And? That's hardly surprising considering that psychic potential is genetic."

"Well it was surprising to my tribe because I was the only male to develop it in centuries. You see, in my tribe, psykers weren't as uncommon as they were everywhere else in the Imperium. We would have at least two or three a generation…sometimes more, and sometimes less. They were always female however. These girls would become shamans to our tribe and they were always arranged to marry into the families of our leaders. Our shamans were encouraged to have many children, which is why I was one of five. I believe generations of this breeding practice gave us a strong psychic bloodline…though it was far more prominent in females for whatever reason. However, a male psyker is a very spiritual and holy thing to the people of Calderis. For it was the shaman's duty to be the spiritual guide and the Shah's duty to be the worldly leader. If a man was able to be both, then he was destined for greatness…at least that is what my people believed," Seiras continued.

"So, they saw you as some kind of messiah or something?" Atia couldn't help but ask.

"Yes…because every time we've ever had a male psyker, they've been taken to the heavens. At least that is what the tales claimed. Our last male psyker was actually one of my ancestors. According to my family, he was taken away by the angels after he saved our tribe from an ork attack," Seiras explained.

Atia nodded, "I see…so since he was male the Blood Ravens took him as a recruit?"

"Precisely…though I wasn't aware of that at the time." He said with a nod.

"Did you ever meet your ancestor? Was he one of your chapter brothers?" Atia asked curiously.

Seiras shook his head, "No…I remember asking about it, and they told me he died in the gene-seed implantation."

"Does that have a high attrition rate?" she wondered.

"He…mutated. Apparently, his psychic powers were too strong and when he got the gene-seed, he did not possess the proper will to keep daemons from possessing him. The Blood Ravens had to kill him," Seiras explained with a bit of sadness.

Atia frowned, "That's an unfortunate fate for any psyker."

"It was very disheartening when I learned of it, because many in my tribe believed that he personally watched over them from the heavens. Perhaps they believe I look after them too," Seiras shook his head.

"So how did you encounter the Blood Ravens if you lived in the middle of nowhere on Calderis?" Atia changed the subject after a short silence.

"After I started developing my psychic powers, I could see visions of the stars. In those early days I always had the same exact dream…I dreamt of a Raven flying away from a burning library, dragging along its last tome in a desperate attempt to save it. The raven would cry out into the darkness as it began to hoard every last scrap it could. The dream always ended with the Raven crying a single tear of blood over burnt tomes that piled around its crumbled nest. That dream was hard to understand as a child, but I know now that it was me predicting the coming of the Blood Ravens," Seiras elaborated.

Atia seemed genuinely interested in the story as she leaned in closer towards him, "So then what happened?"

"One day, they just showed up. By then I was already being trained in the ways of leadership when the Blood Ravens flew over our settlement in a Thunderhawk. It may not seem like much to you, but at the time I was awestruck…as was my entire tribe. Most of us had never even seen a flying gunship or any ship for that matter. What amazed us even more was when it landed, and the hatch came down…" Seiras paused briefly.

Atia remained silent as she waited for Seiras to finish the story.

"Out of it came three Astartes…three names and faces I will never forget. Anteas, Mikelus, and Davian Thule. They were the ones who recruited me. Anteas was an epistolary librarian and one of my future mentors. Mikelus was our Reclusiarch, and Davian Thule was my former captain of the fourth company. I wondered how they found me, but Anteas would later explain that I called out in the warp and that they heard me. He said my psychic potential was very impressive, and due to my young age, they believed I would make a worthy recruit. My other chapter brothers always saw me as somewhat special because of how I was recruited. The three of them were very prominent Astartes within the Blood Ravens and they personally came to recruit me," Seiras explained.

"Interesting…" Atia said as she eyed him curiously.

"Their arrival was met with every bit of awe you could imagine from my tribe. I myself couldn't believe it was real. Anteas told my family that I was to become a Blood Raven…an Adeptus Astartes…an Angel of Death. They all bowed low believing that space marines were literally divine angels…and that I was being carried away to the heavens. Their simplistic views never could have comprehended the true reality of what was happening then and what's happened since. I was allowed to say goodbye to my family, but after they took me away, I never saw them again. The last thing I saw before the Thunderhawk flew away was my mother and sisters crying. To this day I am unsure of whether they were tears of joy or sorrow. Regardless…back to your original question, my hair became white after I received the Blood Raven gene-seed. It is a common side-effect in our chapter's gene-seed implantation. It amplified my psychic powers a great deal as well. As was custom for new recruits, I ended up cutting all of my hair off for the majority of my early years as a Space Marine. I was bald until after I became a full-fledged epistolary. Eventually, I grew it back out," Seiras concluded.

"So, what ever happened to those three space marines that recruited you?" Atia asked curiously.

"Mikelus died on Kronus to a Necron Lord. Anteas died during our chapter's civil war. Captain Davian Thule…he was confined to a dreadnought after a Tyrannid attack on Calderis. Last I heard, he was still alive," Seiras answered.

"You were on Kronus weren't you? I read the reports on that conflict. It was the first time I had ever heard of your chapter," Atia responded.

Seiras nodded, "I was there."

"Did you also participate in the Kaurava Wars?" she asked curiously.

"Unfortunately, I did. That was right before I joined Deathwatch. The Imperial Guard and the Adepta Sororitas refused to cooperate with us in Kaurava. The loyalist infighting gave the xenos the opportunity they needed to pillage the system. Boreale commanded that disastrous mission after Davian Thule had his Force Commander status revoked. I don't wish to sully his name, but Boreale failed the chapter and cost us many Astartes lives. None of that would have happened had that Imperial Guard General simply followed our commands or cooperated. Hell, I would have followed his commands had Boreale and our leaders not been stubborn fools. I personally hate the fact that loyalist orders are always contradicting to one another. I've killed a lot of guardsmen who were simply doing their jobs because some arrogant fool pointed them at me to die. I've also slaughtered countless innocents because my chapter master wanted some relics. There's no sense to any of it," Seiras replied with an unhappy look.

"What of the Sororitas in Kaurava?" Atia wondered.

Seiras shook his head, "They assumed we were corrupted. I suppose I can't blame them. Our chapter is always involved in disputes against Chaos. Not to mention, the Blood Ravens are pretty infamous for killing other loyalist forces and looting relics. The sisters condemned us as heretics and we were forced into open conflict with them as well."

"Yet you're certainly friendly with the Sororitas here. That's an ironic turn of events," Atia chuckled.

"I won't pretend to understand what's going on with the sisters here," Seiras said carelessly.

"I heard the Alpha Legion was on Kaurava IV. You have experience fighting them…and yet their primarch was your close friend. The strange ironies of the universe never cease to amaze me," Atia said distantly.

The librarian said nothing as he looked away.

After a short pause, Atia spoke again, "I appreciate you telling me all of this, Seiras. Sometimes I forget that Astartes were normal people once upon a time. Well...mostly normal. I find it crazy that you were some desert savage as a child. You and I are complete opposites."

"That's obvious," Seiras said bluntly.

"You have no idea…I was born on a privileged, rich shrine world, and my father was a planetary governor. I grew up with everything anyone could possibly want and was even called princess by the servants who worked for our family. Unfortunately, I was the youngest of three siblings, and second daughter as well. I had no claim to any of our fortune or titles. As is custom on my home world, second daughters of the nobility were to be given to the Adepta Sororitas as recruits. Though I got super lucky in that I developed psychic powers too. Seeing as how I was a noble and a prominent, educated girl, they sent me to the Inquisition instead…and here I am. Boring story I know, but that's the gist of my past," Atia said gesturing towards herself.

"That's similar to what I expected," Seiras said blankly.

"There's something else I wanted to talk to you about while we were alone, Seiras. It's about the Eldar…" Atia changed the subject after a brief silence.

Seiras focused intently on her as he replied, "What about them?"

"Why did they really save you? Tell me what you know…off the record. Just between us," she asked seriously.

"I don't know, Atia…but to be honest, it's probably good that I don't. Deception is the nature of their kind," Seiras answered.

"I interrogated Selana Nightgale about this issue as well. She's believes that the Eldar knew who you were and they were somewhat friendly to you. Did the Eldar say anything to you that I should know about?" Atia asked.

"Their farseer said she hopes that saving my life will be a sign of good faith to the Imperium. She claimed that Iybraesil is willing to help us fight Chaos. I told her I wasn't interested in allying with them and that they were better off avoiding us," Seiras lied.

"That seems very unusual. Well…I suppose your Eldar expertise probably helped you out in there didn't it?" Atia asked.

Seiras nodded, "Thankfully, it proved useful."

Atia finally began to walk away as she approached the door, "It was nice talking civilly with you, Seiras. I hope to do it again soon. We're almost at Corun. I will be back later with Arius and Regulus to see if we can rip out the warp corruption in you. If we can't…then expect the worst."

"I will await your return, Inquisitor," Seiras nodded as Atia finally left.

 **The next day, Seiras' quarters,** _ **Avenger of Terra**_

A loud knock caught Seiras' attention causing him to turn and face the doorway. A moment later, Atia entered followed by Arius and Regulus. The two grey knights were both in their armour, and both had helmets on. Arius was carrying his Nemesis Force Halberd, while Regulus was armed with a Nemesis Force Sword.

They looked ready for battle much to Seiras' concern. He immediately stood up and looked at the three other psykers cautiously. Atia was quick to defuse the tension as she spoke up, "Relax Seiras…we're not here to kill you."

Seiras looked between Arius and Regulus who both lowered their weapons into guard stances. He then glanced at Atia and responded, "What now?"

"Kneel Seiras…Arius and I are going to try and enter your mind and force the corruption out of you. This is going to be extremely painful…and invasive." She explained.

Seiras nodded and knelt down as Atia approached. Arius placed his halberd nearby as he followed suit. The Grey Knight and the Inquisitor both placed their hands on Seiras' head. A moment later, he could feel their psychic presences attempting to enter his mind.

"Let us in, Seiras," he heard Atia's voice say in a low reassuring tone.

Letting anything into his mind was something that Seiras hated and never did. Typically it was almost impossible to read an Astartes mind unless they let you. Reluctantly, Seiras lowered his psychic barriers as he had no choice in this particular circumstance. He relaxed his mental fortitude and could feel Arius and Atia entering his mind after a moment.

Their presences in his mind were both noticeable and uncomfortable. Shortly after they entered, Seiras found himself losing all of his sensations as his vision turned to black.

 **Seiras' Memories**

A moment later he heard a voice in the shadows. To his horror it was the voice of his former chapter master, Azariah Kyras.

It carried a low echoic tone through the shadows, "Seiras, it is good to see you again. I have heard nothing but great things about your glorious success on Kronus. Well done, young brother."

"Lord Kyras…" Seiras said his name and nothing else as he looked around in the darkness.

The shadows then shifted to a memory he remembered well. He was standing with majority of the leaders of the Kronus Campaign aboard the Battle Barge _Litany of Fury_.

"Anteas tells me that your psychic potential has grown even greater. He believes in time that you will surpass him. Force Commander Davian and many within the first, second, and fourth companies also speak highly of your leadership abilities as well. Your success has more than earned you the right to join the ranks of the Corvidae Ordo Psykana," Kyras continued.

Seiras felt himself speaking against his own will now to play out the memory within his mind, "Join the first company? Join your librarian honour guard? I do not feel as if I deserve that honour my lord…"

"Oh, but you do. According to Anteas, you and Davian recovered lost Blood Raven relics and helped secure many more. There are also many brothers within the first company have praised your psychic abilities claiming you were instrumental in several key battles. You are henceforth a member of the Corvidae Ordo Psykana, and I am moving you to the First Company. Keep up the good work and you might even get your own set of terminator armour one day. Although if you happen to find some before then it's yours to keep," Kyras continued.

"I don't feel very special Lord Kyras. Better brothers than I gave their lives for that wretched world…and we were forced to kill Imperial Guardsmen because of conflicting orders. Was securing Kronus really necessary for the chapter? The Imperial Guard probably would have done it just fine without us being there," Seiras responded doubtfully.

"Any human that defies an Astartes deserves nothing less than death, young epistolary. Those mere mortals deserved their fates for daring to refuse the orders of the Emperor's Angels of Death. Do not fret over the lives of useless humans, Seiras." Kyras said heartlessly.

Kyras didn't even care about them killing guardsmen. Seiras looked at the chapter master uncertainly, "As you say my lord."

"How can you even doubt this, Seiras?!" another voice interrupted. The librarian turned to see a Devastator Sergeant from the fourth company.

"It just felt wrong to me, Avitus," the librarian answered.

"Wrong?! Bah! Those sniveling little cowards murdered dozens of our own brothers with their Baneblades and basilisks! The Guard should know better than to get in our way! I reveled in every single one of their deaths!" Avitus said hatefully.

Seiras looked at him stoically and responded, "I didn't…and I'm a bit concerned that you did. They weren't traitors, Avitus. Those guardsmen were loyal to the Imperium."

"Don't try and take some type of moral high ground here, brother! It's too late for that kind of pathetic sentiment! You killed just as many as I did, and rightfully so! Do the deaths of our brothers mean nothing to you?!" Avitus hissed.

"Calm yourself, Avitus. We have more than avenged our brothers that died there. Holding onto this hatred is unnecessary," Seiras said sternly.

"Is it now? Then I suppose Barian's death means nothing to you? What about Varus? That piece of trash general in all of his pompous arrogance thought he could kill space marines and get away with it! He earned our retribution and deserves our hatred tenfold!" Avitus shouted angrily.

Seiras sighed, "Perhaps he did, but his men certainly didn't deserve to be slaughtered by Astartes for following orders."

"Hmph…it's a shame I didn't get to be the one to kill him then," Avitus said with pure disdain.

"Who did kill him? Nobody has talked much about that battle since it happened. I was hoping General Alexander would surrender," Davian Thule asked curiously.

"Yes, tell us brother Seiras…who was the one that killed him?" Avitus interrupted as he glared at the librarian.

The librarian looked over at Davian Thule, "I did, Commander. Sgt Aramus, Sgt Avitus, and myself were able to slip past their Baneblade line with a small group and break into their headquarters. We killed their entire command staff. The general fought to his dying breath and showed no desire to surrender. In my rage I killed him without thinking."

Thule looked at Seiras somewhat remorsefully and nodded, "I see…it was an unfortunate necessity, but at least you understand that it wasn't right, Seiras. General Alexander was a good man from what I understand."

"Do not condemn our young brothers for doing what they did, Davian. I would gladly slaughter billions of humans for the good of the chapter. We are a brotherhood above all else…never forget that," Kyras hissed.

"Yes, we are, my lord…but we serve the Emperor. How is killing other loyal servants of the Emperor over a few worthless relics justified? I've fought beside Cadians, Lord Kyras. They may be mortals, but they're brave and honourable citizens of the Imperium. Epistolary brother Seiras is rightfully concerned about this. I agree with him…we shouldn't have fought against them. We shouldn't have even been on Kronus to begin with. The relics we found were not worth the price we paid, or the lives we lost."

Seiras frowned as he looked over at Captain Thule. The man's right eye now bionic gave him a fresh reminder of Mikelus' death and Davian's injury to the Necrons of Kronus.

Kyras turned to Davian Thule, "Ah yes, I forgot you held sympathy for guardsmen, young Davian."

"Respect is a more appropriate word my lord. I've seen Cadians fight against Iron Warriors just as bravely as any Astartes would," Thule replied.

"Regardless of what you think of them, they took arms against the chapter and killed some of our brothers. They deserved their fates," Kyras responded calmly.

Davian frowned, but said nothing in response.

"Forgetting that irrelevant matter, there is a more important issue that does concern me about Kronus, Davian. Anteas told me that you destroyed ancient data slates recovered about our chapter's past. May I ask why?" Kyras demanded.

Davian looked down, "Some things are better left unknown Lord Kyras. Sometimes, the past should remain buried."

"What did you learn?!" Kyras almost hissed full of anticipation.

Thule looked over at Seiras before answering their chapter master, "Something I wish I never knew…something that wasn't worth the lives of millions of people."

"You will tell me, Commander, or I will punish your insolence," Kyras threatened.

Davian Thule stared Kyras dead in the eye, "I swear upon the Emperor's name that I will never speak of it again. If I am to be reprimanded for that, then I accept my punishment."

Azariah Kyras looked angry and finally sighed in annoyance, "Very well…your Force Commander status is hereby revoked. I am placing you back on Calderis to watch the new recruits. Take your fourth company with you, Thule."

Thule nodded without another word and began to walk away, "Yes my lord."

After he was gone, Kyras turned towards Seiras anxiously, "Do you know anything about what Captain Thule found, Seiras?"

"I wish that I did, Lord Kyras. Davian has been depressed ever since reading it. I have no idea what he learned, but if it's enough to make him act like that, then we're probably better off not knowing," Seiras explained.

Kyras shook his head and placed a hand on Seiras' shoulder, "No, my young pupil…no. We must always learn everything that we can. Knowledge is power…no matter how unpleasant it may be. Never turn away knowledge lest you accept ignorance and weakness into your being. Does the secret of our chapter's founding not stir a curiosity within you? Have you no desire to learn of our gene-father and our brother chapters? Don't you wish to discover the truth?"

"Do you honestly believe Commander Thule would destroy data about our founding? I think it was something else…maybe a dark secret about the Horus Heresy that shouldn't be known," Seiras responded to the Chief Librarian and Chapter Master.

"It's difficult to say if he would or not. I will speak with him later and uncover the truth. No secrets will be withheld from me," Kyras replied darkly.

"What do you think he saw, Lord Kyras?" Seiras wondered.

"If my theory is correct, then perhaps Davian DID learn about our founding. Perhaps the Blood Ravens are part of a…questionable founding. Or a questionable progenitor," Kyras responded slowly.

"Questionable how? Are you saying we could be a part of a cursed founding?" Seiras asked.

Before Kyras could answer, another Astartes interrupted them, "Lord Kyras, a word please…"

"Yes?" the chapter master asked somewhat annoyed.

"In private…our younger brothers should not hear this," the space marine answered.

To Seiras' astonishment, it was the famed captain of the third company, Gabriel Angelos. He has surprised to see the 3rd captain on the battle barge.

The chapter master sighed, "Very well…be on your way Seiras. We will speak again another time."

As he left the bridge after most of the others, Seiras was surprised to see Davian Thule waiting outside. He looked at the man surprised, "Commander? Were you waiting for me?"

"It's just Captain now. I'm no longer a Force Commander, Seiras. And yes…I sent Gabriel to go speak with Lord Kyras about the relics we found, but I also wanted to talk with you in private before I head back to Calderis," he replied.

Seiras looked at him troubled, "Why did you withhold information from Lord Kyras? He just demoted you. You're lucky he didn't execute you."

"I've never been fond of the inner circles within our chapter, Seiras. I don't trust them very much. Lord Kyras, Captain Diomedes, and a lot of the first company have this unusual disposition towards humanity and the Imperium at large. I just wanted to express my concern to you before you joined them," Davian explained.

The librarian cocked his head confused, "What are you saying, brother?"

"You're young, so you don't know how the politics work. The Corvidae Ordo Psykana is very exclusive, Seiras…Anteas wasn't allowed to join for almost three centuries. Only Lord Kyras' most trusted librarians within his inner circle are permitted to join. You're the youngest librarian to ever join it. That troubles me greatly. I don't understand why Kyras has taken such a liking to you, but I wanted to offer you some advice," Thule said grimly.

"What is it, Captain?" Seiras asked seriously.

Thule sighed heavily, "Don't let them dictate who you are and what you believe, Seiras. Of all our brothers on Kronus, you were one of the few that showed any kind of remorse for the lives we took. Don't forsake your humanity for Lord Kyras' sake. He's an ancient and troubled astartes. He spent centuries stranded on a space hulk and has never been the same since coming back to us. Kyras doesn't have empathy for humanity or even most of the Blood Ravens…do not let him treat you like a disposable tool. Do not let him tell you that faith to the chapter is above our faith to the Emperor."

"What are you saying?!" Seiras replied angrily, "Are you insulting our chapter master?!"

"No, brother…I'm just telling you to be careful. I wouldn't feel right unless I gave you a warning ahead of time," the captain explained.

"Davian…what did you see in those records?" Seiras asked seriously.

"Something terrible…something that would doom the chapter if anyone would ever learn of it. Lord Kyras is already too detached from humanity. I don't trust him with this secret…and now that you're a part of his inner circle, unfortunately I can't trust you either, Seiras. I'm sorry brother…but the past should remain buried," Thule said sadly.

Seiras frowned but nodded, "I see…well it was honour serving on Kronus with you Captain Thule…and all those times before."

"It was honour having you in the fourth company, Seiras. Do the Emperor proud, brother…and may none find you wanting," Davian said coolly before walking off and leaving the librarian alone.

 _" **So…your traitorous chapter master was responsible for the Blood Ravens attacking other loyalist forces?"**_ Seiras heard Atia's voice in his mind.

This memory soon jumped ahead many years to another troubling one. Seiras was now in the company of what looked to be a dozen or so librarians. In front of them all was Azariah Kyras who appeared to be pacing.

"Infiltrating this space hulk is vital for the chapter, my young brothers. I have received many visions of an ancient Blood Raven vessel deep aboard it. This ship could contain our history, lost relics, or even a clue to our unknown primarch. The first company terminators will be spearheading the mission to clear out xenos vermin. Your job however, is much more important. I need you to find this ship with the upmost secrecy," Kyras explained.

Seiras frowned, "Why keep it a secret, Lord Kyras?"

"Surely you must understand, Seiras, that many other imperial forces will be attempting to loot this space hulk as well. I do not want them securing chapter secrets," Kyras explained.

"Lord Kyras speaks truly. I believe the Blood Angels are in the system as well. They may have terminators aboard already," another one of the librarians added.

"We must make haste. Depart at once young brothers. Take boarding torpedoes and hit the space hulk in quadrant 3," Kyras said waving them all away.

The memory continued in brief spontaneous flashes which briefly showcased their arrival and initial search of the vessel. It was filled with Orks mostly and a strange breed of xenos that Seiras was not familiar with at that time.

 _" **Those look like genestealers,"**_ Atia's voice sounded again.

Nothing noteworthy happened until eventually a huge warp anomaly appeared. It blasted the integrity of the hallway apart. Seiras who had been in the back of the formation was now isolated from his brothers.

He spoke into the vox with calm, but serious tone, "Brothers, the explosion launched me back. I'm on the other side of this debris."

"Wait that's the ship!" Seiras heard one of them practically bellow into the vox.

"Lord Kyras, we found the ship. Sending you our coordinates now," another spoke somewhat excited.

Kyras' voice came over the vox shortly afterward, "Excellent work brothers. Search it first, and I'll send the terminators to clear you a path out."

"Seiras, is there a way around? Are you stuck?" Anteas' voice sounded over the vox.

"No, I'm not…but it doesn't look like I can advance or go back the way we came. There is another path here. Should I take it or try to teleport out?" Seiras asked.

"I would advise against trying to teleport from here brother. That warp anomaly made this entire area unstable. Try to get some distance first. We'll have the nearest terminators come by to assist if you need help." Anteas replied.

"Alright, well what should I do then?" Seiras asked.

"It's probably best if you just find a way out, Seiras. We don't really need you for this. Try to find your way to the third terminator squad," another one of the librarians added.

Seiras frowned beneath his helmet, "You're just going to leave me back here? That ship isn't going anywhere."

"That warp anomaly that just exploded suggests otherwise. We don't have time to waste coming back for you, brother. Just find your way out! We need to loot this ship before anything else happens. Our mission is a priority." another librarian said commandingly into the vox.

"As you say…good luck brothers," Seiras replied before turning off his vox.

 _" **They just left you?!"**_ Atia's voice asked in his head.

 _" **All of them became traitors…it's strange to think how such small acts like this, and me joining the Deathwatch were the only things that kept me from their fates,"**_ Seiras replied to Atia psychically.

Seiras memory continued with him trekking through the space hulk by himself. He fought off a great deal of genestealers on his way to one of the terminator squads' landing torpedoes, but was swift enough to avoid anything he couldn't handle. Eventually, he came upon a grisly looking hallway with three dead terminators in it. All three of them had a trail of blood leading to their bodies suggesting that they crawled or were dragged there. After briefly surveying the surrounding area and making sure that the scene was safe, Seiras approached them with haste.

The downed terminators looked like they had been heavily swarmed by the unusual looking aliens aboard the space hulk. All of the nearby ones were dead, but the wounds these terminators had appeared much larger than the nearby aliens could have inflicted. Seiras was actually surprised to see giant puncture wounds in their terminator armour. All three of the terminators were presumably dead.

Seiras quickly knelt down to retrieve their gene-seed as he assumed the red armoured astartes were his own brothers. A closer examination immediately showed that they were actually Blood Angels.

Of the three of them, one was an apothecary by the looks of it. Seiras felt a slight bit of hesitation in disturbing their bodies as he pulled off the helmet off the apothecary terminator. He always wanted his own set of terminator armour…but he was more concerned about getting the gene-seed out of these dead Blood Angels. Progenoid glands were priceless, and even if they were another chapter's, Seiras couldn't stomach the idea of leaving them.

To his utter astonishment, the apothecary was actually still alive. The terminator looked up at Seiras' psychic hood and his blue helmet with a bit of confusion. His face was chiseled and handsome, his hair was short and blonde, and his crystal blue eyes seemed to be fading.

"A librarian?" the apothecary said somewhat hazily. He appeared to be dying by the looks of his fading gaze.

"Find…Kallius. Give him our Progenoids. Tell him to get out. This ship is infested with Tyrannids," The blood angel said with his voice fading every audible word.

"Kallius? Where is he?" Seiras asked curiously.

The dying terminator gathered his remaining energy to download a map into the machine spirit of Seiras' armour.

"For Sanguinius…" the terminator said the name of his primarch before he finally died. It seemed somewhat sad and unusual to watch an Astartes die in such a way. Seiras was practically numb to watching others get blown apart or maimed. Looking someone in the eyes as they died quietly was a very different thing.

With reluctance, Seiras recovered the progenoid glands of the three dead Blood Angels. Their armour was beyond salvageable by the looks of it, but Seiras also took the Crux Terminatus badges off of each of their shoulder plates as well. He quickly mounted them on his armour and began to move away quickly when he heard aliens screeching in the distance.

Using the map he was recently given, he swiftly followed it to the designated area. It was an open looking hanger area by the looks of it. His helmet's display showed that there was atmospheric pressure in the room.

Seiras briefly took his helmet off and looked around the room before noticing an adjacent hallway. Upon turning its corner, he was greeted by a dozen Blood Angels. All of them were in terminator armour, but not all of them had helmets on.

They appeared to have been having a conversation when Seiras showed up.

All of them raised their weapons alarmed by his presence. Undoubtedly they were surprised that the sensors on their armour couldn't sense him. Nobody spoke for a moment until one looked at the blood drop on Seiras' chest, "Are you one of ours? I don't recognize you,"

"He certainly looks like one ours…but I don't recognize that heraldry," another spoke.

"His armour bears the heraldry of a Raven. He's a Blood Raven I think," their leader explained.

"Blood Raven? Are you a son of Sanguinius? I don't believe I've ever heard of your chapter before," another one of other the terminators added.

"I found your dead brothers. An apothecary and two others. The apothecary told me to bring their progenoid glands to someone named Kallius," Seiras explained.

"I'm Kallius," the leader of the group spoke seriously, "Ivalian is dead?"

Seiras pulled the three Crux Terminatus plates off the back of his armour and handed it to Kallius, "Here's their progenoid glands and their Crux Terminatus pads."

The Blood Angel sergeant looked shocked as he took the gene-seed and Crux Terminatus' in hand. His visible face showed remorse as he glanced at Seiras, "Was their armour salvageable?"

"No…apparently these strange aliens in here called Tyrannids punctured it apart. The wounds they suffered looked to be from one five times larger than the rest I've seen in here. One of your brother terminators appeared to have been chewed up as well," Seiras explained.

"It can't be helped…at least we have their gene-seed. We were actually just looking for them. Their vox went silent several hours ago. I…don't really know what to say about this," Kallius trailed off in disbelieving silence as he stared at Seiras.

One of the others piped up urgently, "What is a lone librarian doing on a space hulk right now? Where are your chapter brothers?"

"I got separated," Seiras replied vaguely.

"Yet, you had time to bring these to us?" Kallius interrupted.

Seiras shrugged, "Well, I could also use some help getting out of here. My own brothers essentially left me behind."

"What is a librarian doing aboard a space hulk in standard power armour though? Your chapter was foolish to send you in here without tactical dreadnought armour. It's a miracle you haven't been killed in here. How large was your boarding party?" Kallius asked.

"Twelve librarians and four terminator squads. We're here looking for one of our ancient ships," Seiras told them the truth. He knew Kyras would have condemned such an action, but he did not want to arouse suspicion in these Blood Angels.

 _"_ ** _So, this is where you met Kallius? I always imagined something more romantic,_ "** Atia joked.

" _ **Why are you watching all of my personal memories right now? Is there a point to this incessant mind probing?"**_ Seiras asked her annoyed.

 _" **There is a point to this Seiras. These memories appear to be emotional weights upon your mind. The corruption within you is heavily focused around the emotions and guilt you carry from these memories."**_ Arius added.

 _" **We need to find the source…push harder, Arius. As much as I enjoy being inside of Seiras' mind, we need to eradicate this taint,"** _Atia sighed.

 _" **We're going to push further, Seiras, to force it out. This will not be pleasant,"** _Arius explained.

A moment later, Seiras felt horrible agony as Arius and Atia both forced their psychic wills into the darkest part of his mind. It now showed a strange vision

 **Seiras' vision**

Floating freely through what appeared to be the immaterial cosmos, Seiras could see his soul psychically emanating and shining in stark contrast to all around it. He looked over towards a churning vortex in the stars where a great eye was watching him.

As he looked upon the eye, the most beautiful voice in the universe called out to him, "Come to me, Seiras."

The astartes had no way of resisting this voice as he began to drift closer towards the swirling eye. As he got closer however, its deceptively beautiful light began to look more sinister and wrong.

With all of his willpower and might, he managed to stop his advance, "This isn't right…"

"I'm waiting Seiras…come and be with me," the voice sounded again.

"NO! NO! NO!" Seiras fought with all of his might to resist now as the eye began to actually pull him closer with some type of gravitational force.

 _" **Seiras, calm down! Your psychic powers are tearing up the room!"**_ Atia's voice interrupted his vision.

 _" **Resist the daemon, brother, or I'll have to kill you!"**_ Arius' voice followed up.

"She can see me!" Seiras said in a frenzied delirium.

 _" **He's overpowering us, Arius! If this keeps up we're going to have to kill him!"**_ Atia said urgently.

"ARGHHHHHH!" Seiras shouted loudly as he began to resist his all of his might.

Arius' voice sounded again, _**"He's going to make it! Keep resisting brother!"**_

An unbearable and indescribable agony flooded Seiras' senses as he finally broke free of the daemon's pull.

"I'll be watching you, Seiras," the voice giggled before fading away.

 **Avenger of Terra, Seiras' Quarters**

Jerking free with psychic force, Seiras launched Atia and Arius both off of him and into the nearby bulkheads. The alarmed Regulus immediately moved in to swing his Nemesis Force Sword, but the weapon never quite made it as Seiras' heightened psychic power held the Grey Knight still in stasis.

"He did it," Arius said calmly as he got back up and moved to ease Regulus' concern. Seiras released his hold a moment later as he turned to look around the room.

Whatever just happened, completely demolished most of it. Atia let out a huge sigh of relief as she stood back up finally, "It's good I wore my armour in here."

"What was that?" Seiras asked alarmed.

"We followed your emotions to a repressed vision of yours. It allowed us to force the corruption fully into your mind, where you could forcefully expel it. I'd say it's a lot like popping a pimple by squeezing it hard enough," Atia explained.

"So…I'm cured?" Seiras said uncertainly.

Atia shook her head, "No, but you're stable now. Whatever that daemon was, it was trying to open a portal with your mind. It's good you resisted. You should be alright for now…though we will be keeping close watch on you from here on out."

"Am I still detained to this room?" Seiras asked.

"No, you may go about the ship as you please now. I will check up with you later," Atia said slowly.

Seiras felt like the situation was extremely unusual, but he didn't hesitate to accept his freedom again. Regulus opened the door for him as the librarian wasted no time moving to leave.

Once Seiras was gone, Regulus turned towards Atia concerned, "I noticed something strange, Inquisitor. During your mind probing of the librarian, his psychic powers fluctuated in bizarre ways. His psychic barriers are much stronger than a typical psyker's. I believe he is more powerful than Arius and myself."

"You might be right. Arius and I have never had something like that happen…even with psykers that completely lose it," Atia nodded.

"Judging by his memories, I would say he's hesitant to use his powers too much. I have no doubts that he is more powerful than even he himself realizes," Arius noted.

"Are you sure he's stable?" Regulus asked Atia and Arius with a doubtful tone.

Atia nodded, "He resisted whatever voice was calling out to him in his mind. I feel like that's the best we can do for now. Besides, detaining him for too long or killing him aren't exactly reasonable options to take in our current situation."

"I understand," Regulus nodded.

The Inquisitor sighed heavily as she thought for a moment, _'What was that voice in his head? It was so beautiful...'_

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Alright guys, there's chapter 9 for you. Hopefully it wasn't boring, but a lot of this one was reflection and some more of Seiras' past. Now that he's "better" what kinds of things will be different? Will he still be THOT-gazing? Of course, he will…because Slaanesh wills it. There's no brakes on this heresy train.

Also, I know I've been hyping it for a while now, but the Dark Eldar are going to appear VERY soon…so stay tuned if you're curious to see what horrible things are going to happen.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Human Nature**

 _ **Avenger of Terra,**_ **Medical Bay**

The moment he was released from Atia's custody, Seiras made it his first priority to check on Kallius. Even despite the discomfort it brought him to walk among humans without his armour, he did not care right now. The librarian moved with an almost graceful urgency as he practically ran past the majority of his obstacles.

Upon finally reaching the isolated medical chamber for Kallius, he was quickly greeted by one of the Imperial Fist apothecaries. The other Astartes eyed him with curious patience, though Seiras could not discern an expression due to the helmet.

It was very likely that the apothecary was wondering why he wasn't in his power armour. Seiras pushed this concern aside as he immediately spoke his mind, "Has there been any improvements to Sergeant Kallius' condition?"

The apothecary nodded and spoke calmly, "He is stable for now…the delirium he experienced passed shortly after you gave him blood. I found your solution to be unusual, but I suppose it not my place to ask about it. The Blood Angel will live."

"What is his condition? Will he be battle ready within a reasonable time?" Seiras asked hopefully.

The apothecary nodded, "His injuries have healed better than we expected. I suppose it might have something to do with his chapter's gene-seed. He only regained consciousness once during the past week. He specifically asked for you before we put him out again."

Seiras nodded understandingly. He knew exactly why Kallius wanted to see him. Drinking Seiras' blood had very likely affected Kallius' Omophagea implant. He might have seen some of Seiras' recent memories. While the thought was incredibly distasteful and uncomfortable to imagine, Seiras had fully considered this outcome before offering his blood to Kallius.

His cousin Astartes' life was worth more to him than hiding his own shame. Seiras briefly pondered what he was going to say when Kallius asked. While he was in no danger of being reprimanded, the librarian felt greater anxiety at the notion of Kallius looking down on him, than he ever could have from Atia.

"May I see him?" Seiras asked as respectfully as he could.

The Imperial Fist nodded as he guided Seiras back into Kallius' operating table. The sight looked grisly and very concerning. Countless tubes and surgical instruments were still in the Blood Angel's body. The other apothecary was calmly performing some type of surgery on the Blood Angel's left leg.

Seiras wasn't entirely sure what the purpose of it was for, but Kallius looked mostly intact nevertheless. As he approached, the Blood Angel's eyes shot open…almost as if he could sense him.

Kallius' ice blue eyes met with Seiras' teal green. Seiras could see a lot of different emotions within his fellow Astartes' eyes and wasn't sure how to address them.

After a brief silence, Seiras spoke up, "I'm glad to see you're still alive, Kallius."

"Seiras…" was all the Blood Angel managed to say as he attempted to adjust himself.

He briefly looked over at the two apothecaries, whom were both watching with evident curiosity. One of the apothecaries took the hint as Kallius stared at them, and quickly motioned for the other one to follow him out of the room. After they were a considerable distance away, Kallius finally turned his gaze back upon the librarian.

"I'm sure you have many questions Kallius…ask and I will answer them," Seiras decided to break the ice first.

"It wasn't just the Red Thirst, Seiras…it was the Black Rage. I…I saw Sanguinius. I was on the _Vengeful Spirit_ …fighting Horus. I was there. I was him." Kallius exclaimed seriously.

"Black Rage? What is that?" Seiras asked concerned.

Kallius looked at him sadly, "It's a step beyond the Red Thirst. Those that experience it usually fall into madness. If I ever return to my brothers alive, they will put me into the Death Company now. To be honest, I'm amazed I even came back at all."

"Is that the last thing you remember?" the librarian wondered.

The Blood Angel shook his head, "No…my vision ended when I last saw you."

"I gave you my blood to calm you…just as you did to your own brothers. I wasn't sure what else to do. The others were curious, but I kept your secret," the Blood Raven elaborated.

Blinking several times in disbelief, Kallius replied with evident concern, "Yes…I remember seeing you and the others after the vision ended. I've had strange dreams about you ever sense…"

"Memories of mine," Seiras clarified knowingly.

Kallius nodded, "Yes, I saw you with Sororitas. I saw you in the Navigation Chamber. I even saw Eldar…what happened Seiras? How did we escape from Fulgrim? Where is Nogemo? Everything is hazy and incoherent. I can't make sense of how one memory leads to another."

"The battle ended about two standard terran weeks ago. We've been wiping out residual chaos forces during that time. You were injured on the bridge by Omegon and Fulgrim. We ended up retreating while the two fought each other. During our escape, I stayed back with some of the humans and I got separated from the rest of you. A traitor marine took me down with a lascannon, but an Eldar Infiltration team happened to be nearby, and they saved our lives," Seiras explained.

The Blood Angel looked at him confused, "Why?"

"The Eldar are difficult to understand. They believe my life holds future value for their kind. That's a long story I'd rather tell you in a more private location," he sighed.

Kallius shook his head, "That's not what I meant…why did you stay behind to save those humans?"

"What?" the Blood Raven tilted his head.

"Since when have you ever cared about the lives of humans, Seiras?" Kallius wondered.

"I…I was reminded of the first time we met and how I got left behind by my brothers. I couldn't leave them there like that. They would have surely died," Seiras replied.

The Blood Angel looked at him and smiled weakly, "Nemias and Viggo are definitely rubbing off on you. Them and the Inquisitor. You've been acting strange recently…it has me concerned."

"What memories of mine can you specifically remember? Was there anything else you wish for me to clarify?" Seiras asked with calm curiosity.

Kallius looked at him with knowing eyes, "Nothing I feel the need to ask you about right now. The situation with the Eldar and the Inquisitor is something we shouldn't discuss here."

"Are you sure?" Seiras tilted his head with concern.

The Blood Angel nodded, "I'm sure, Seiras. I won't condemn you for what happened. These past few weeks have been an unprecedented experience for us all. Just mind that you don't let these humans weaken your resolve or your focus. We're not made for that. We're not really human."

It was extremely obvious to the librarian that Kallius had seen some of his more embarrassing memories. There was no telling to what extent that entailed, but Seiras was not about to pry. He was truly thankful that the Blood Angel had the respect not to judge him, but nevertheless, a great shame filled his heart.

His shame was apparent in his eyes as he looked away for a moment. Seiras turned back towards Kallius and sighed, "It's difficult to justify-"

"Do not let your thoughts linger on it, Seiras. Your secrets will stay secret. I owe you that much at the very least. You're loyal, trustworthy, and you're my Deathwatch brother…that's all that really matters to me right now. I'm in no position to judge you for a lack of discipline. None of us are perfect," Kallius interrupted with a reassuring tone.

"Your empathy is unexpected, but greatly appreciated brother," Seiras replied slowly as he looked away.

"Sometimes I wonder if you actually are a true brother to me, Seiras? Even though your chapter does not know of its primarch…perhaps you are sons of Sanguinius? You calmed my rage like a Blood Angel would have. What do you think?" Kallius changed the subject.

Seiras looked at Kallius doubtfully, "We do not possess the same gene-seed flaws that your chapter has. As honourable as it would be to call myself a son of Sanguinius...I do not believe it."

"The Lamenters were sons of Sanguinius, and they cured the Red Thirst somehow. It's not entirely impossible that the Blood Ravens are the same. Your chapter's strong corps of psykers is definitely similar to the Blood Angel's librarium," Kallius noted.

Seiras shook his head, "Maybe…but if it were true, then we would have some connection. Our chapters barely know of each other."

"Who do you think is the primarch of the Blood Ravens then? Surely you have your own theories?" Kallius asked interested.

"Some within our librarium always believed it was the Lion. His successor chapters are known for their psykers as well, and like them we were very secretive. I sometimes pondered it was perhaps the Khan, Corvus Corax, or even Lord Guilliman himself…though there's truly no way of knowing for sure. We lack all the traits of those founding chapters, and we have no strong connection to any of them. The Blood Ravens typically don't get along with any other chapters at all…well minus the Ultramarines and Grey Knights I suppose," Seiras sighed.

"I saw some of your conversation with Fulgrim through your memories…do you think it's possible that your primarch is a traitor?" Kallius asked.

Seiras cracked a fist angrily, "No, I refuse to believe that. We've always been loyal to the Emperor…most of us anyway."

"I do not doubt that, Seiras, but maybe your chapter originated during the Heresy. The Blood Ravens almost rival first founding chapters in power like the Black Templars do. The Inquisition also appears to be on good terms with your chapter despite the negative reputation it's obtained. Why might that be?" Kallius asked.

The librarian glared at the Blood Angel with furious contempt, "You truly believe we're the sons of traitors?! Who do you think my primarch is then?!"

Kallius shrugged as best he could in his current position, "I don't know Seiras. I'm just theorizing on uncomfortable possibilities. Do not take my theories as facts. I just think there's more to what Fulgrim said than everyone believes."

"Are you saying that you believe what Fulgrim told me?" Seiras asked seriously.

The Blood Angel sighed, "The Horus Heresy was a long time ago, Seiras. Who's to say that every legion wholly followed their primarch? I think Fulgrim was telling you the truth. Well…at least somewhat. I definitely believe what he said about the Red Scorpions. They're insufferable as far as Astartes go...obsessed with purity,"

"Why would you believe anything out of that Fulgrim's mouth? He's a daemon!" the librarian said disapprovingly.

"It's something to consider at least. How many chapters in the Imperium don't know the origin of their primarch or their founding? Maybe they 'forgot' for a reason," Kallius trailed off.

"So, you truly believe that Decimus is a son of Angron the Red Angel? You would insult his very soul if you said that to his face," Seiras replied.

"I don't believe that, but whether it's true or not, none of this matters in the Deathwatch. Decimus is my brother and so are you. I will never speak of it again," Kallius deflected.

The librarian glanced away deep in thought, "That would be most appropriate, brother. The last thing our Kill Team needs is more ammunition for Gregorius or the Inquisition to condemn us with."

"Where is the fleet going now?" Kallius changed the subject again.

Seiras was silent for a long moment before answering, "Corun…it's a nearby hive world. I will leave you to heal, brother. Come find me when the apothecaries are done with you."

"This will stay between us, Seiras. Do not let your mind be burdened. I trust you…and just know you can always trust me." the Blood Angel said softly as the librarian finally left.

Upon exiting, Seiras looked over at the apothecaries who were on the other side of the open medical chamber. He jerked his head motioning for them to continue with their duties.

As he made his way for the exit, Seiras briefly glanced over in the direction of Jessenta's room. He thought about checking on her, but decided it was pointless and quickly left.

 _ **Avenger of Terra,**_ **Mess Hall**

After leaving the medical bay, Seiras felt an unusual hunger fill his senses. For reasons unknown, he had a strange craving for normal food again. He hadn't had anything to eat in over two weeks.

Part of him thought about checking on his armour before going to the mess hall, but he didn't feel like waiting. _'Why do I feel so hungry? I never feel this hungry. I have a craving for one of those cookies.'_

Deciding on eating, the librarian quickly made his way into the Mess Hall. This was his third time coming in, and much to his astonishment, it looked relatively undamaged. The workers in there seemed to recognize him by his large size but looked very curious at his armourless form.

Seeing a space marine for normal humans was astronomically rare. Seeing an Astartes without armour on was next to unheard of for most mortal humans. His lack of power armour seemed to attract more attention than he would have from actually wearing it.

Seiras got in line behind a group of regular human guardsmen. The soldiers looked at him with awestruck fascination.

"Holy shit…is that one of the space marines?" one of the guardsmen said amazed.

"You don't have to wait in line, my lord. Please pass us," a nearby sergeant offered.

Seiras simply ignored them as he remained in his spot in line. It made things somewhat awkward for the guardsmen, but they eventually got the hint that the Astartes had no interest in interacting with them.

Upon finally getting his extra massive portion of food, Seiras looked around for somewhere to sit. The officer's table he sat at before was actually filled with naval officers. They all turned to look at him, no doubt expecting the librarian to approach them.

Much to everyone's interest, Seiras simply sat down at a regular empty table in the middle of the hall. The librarian had no idea why this table was empty but chose not to concern himself with it as he ate his meal.

He could feel countless eyes watching him from all angles. Something about seeing an Astartes eat must have been the most interesting thing in the galaxy judging by some people's expressions. This experience was hardly new to him, but Seiras had extra attention on him due to the lack of his armour.

The Astartes simply ignored it as he passively ate his meal. Truthfully, he was almost gorging himself in a gluttonous frenzy. Never in his life as an Astartes had food tasted so good to him. He savored a bite of the cookie that came with his meal. Such a simple pastry…and yet he found enjoyment from eating it. Seiras felt a strange sensation as he consumed the cookie. He couldn't quite understand why he enjoyed it so much. Part of him felt like it was heretical to enjoy it as he immediately dismissed the blissful feeling.

' _What am I doing? This is not a natural feeling…the food did not taste this good last time. Has something altered my sensations?'_ Seiras quickly began to realize.

As he finished his meal, several figures started sitting down around him out of nowhere. Seiras looked around briefly and instantly recognized the figures as Tempestus Scions. They weren't just any stormtroopers either. Three of them were the ones he returned with. None of the stormtroopers had helmets on, but they were all armed and armoured.

Some of the regular guardsmen and shipmen sitting further away looked on with shock that the Scions had the courage to boldly sit next to the space marine without asking permission. Although, this was their table by the looks of it. The Scions did not eat with the other crew members. Seiras quickly remembered that fact as a group of more Scions sat down at the table.

These men were undoubtedly some of the most elite unmodified humans in the Imperium, and many looked battle-hardened. The librarian had a decent measure of respect for them as they had proven to be more effective than the standard guardsmen he was used to seeing. They all focused intense stares at Seiras as he looked around. This situation would have been intimidating to a regular human, but as an aloof Astartes, however, he was not affected by their strong stares.

"The Inquisitor finally let you out?" one of the Scions asked. Seiras immediately recognized him as Derrin the Scion officer.

The librarian nodded, "She did."

"Well that's good. I put in a good word for you when I last saw her. Although I probably didn't even need to considering how much she likes you," Derrin replied.

Seiras looked at him stoically, "You have my gratitude for that."

He said nothing else as he contemplated on leaving. Derrin watched him silently for a moment before speaking again, "I've never seen an Astartes without armour on before. You look nothing like I imagined."

"How exactly did you imagine me to look?" Seiras asked him with a calm tone.

The scion shrugged, "I don't know…a bit bulkier I suppose. Your anatomical proportions look a lot more human outside of power armour. Well more or less I suppose. What are those plugs in your body?"

"They're part of the Black Carapace…it's a subdermal implant connected to the nervous system that allows Astartes to interface with power armour and move more easily in it," Seiras explained.

"Seriously? Well that would explain why you guys are able to move so fast in power armour. Where's your armour at anyway?" Derrin asked curiously.

Many of the onlookers had shocked expressions that the stormtrooper was blatantly asking Seiras questions. The librarian's willingness to actually interact with the man was an even bigger surprise to most of the onlookers and eavesdroppers.

"It is being repaired by our techmarine, Nemias. I will be donning it as soon as possible. I do not like being without it for obvious reasons," the librarian replied bluntly.

"That's understandable. I never quite feel comfortable without my gear either. It's almost like our war gear is a part of who we are. I guess that's just a warrior thing," Derrin noted.

Seiras looked at him in approval, "I agree, Lieutenant Derrin Reinhardt."

The nearby scions all stared at Seiras with disbelief that he knew the man's name.

"I'm kind of shocked you remember my name. You looked completely out of it when the Eldar brought us back to the ship," he replied seriously.

"I remember everything and everyone," the Astartes replied with a blunt stoicism.

One of the other stormtroopers finally cut into their conversation and spoke up with awe, "Wait…this is the space marine that saved you guys? I was wondering why he was actually talking to you."

Derrin nodded, "Yeah, he's the one. This is Seiras…he's the leader of that Deathwatch Team."

"I'm not actually the lead-"Seiras responded but was quickly interrupted.

"Seiras? You mean the one from the vox broadcast? The same one that's really tight with the Inquisitor?" another Scion cut in with a shocked voice.

' _Great…the whole fleet did hear me,'_ Seiras realized.

"I heard the space marine, Seiras piloted the ship through the warp after the navigators died. I didn't realize he was the same one." another chimed it seriously.

' _That's not classified? Well I suppose Inquisitorial Scions would know about it.'_ Seiras wondered to himself as they continued to speak up.

"He did? How is that even possible?" another asked dumbfounded.

"I'm a librarian," Seiras answered as if it were simple question.

The unnamed stormtrooper looked at the space marine confused, "What exactly is a librarian?"

"They're Astartes psykers like the Grey Knights. Librarians are extremely rare and powerful from what I understand." one of the recognizable Scions answered. Seiras remembered his name was Markus Trenus.

"They can pilot ships through the warp? I thought only navigators could do that?!" another nameless Scion gawked.

Seiras sighed and decided to explain himself, "It is not something most librarians can do. I was personally trained by my chapter master on how to peer into the warp. It was a skill he possessed and passed on to me. Even still…I would have failed had the Emperor not intervened."

"What?! The Emperor intervened?" Markus asked amazed.

The librarian looked down and spoke slowly, "It's hard to say what happened, but I believe I heard his voice. A light guided me, and I heard an angelic choir when I saw the Astronomican."

"That's amazing…it really makes me believe that the Emperor was watching over us this entire time," Derrin added.

"No shit, right? Who'd have thought we'd have lived through a warpstorm AND fighting traitor space marines?" Markus laughed.

"The Emperor was definitely with us back on the _Pride of the Emperor_ …I thought we were screwed when that hallway collapsed," the third named Stormtrooper spoke up.

Seiras remembered his name was Quintus Rex. The young scion glanced at the space marine with approving eyes, "I'm just glad not all of the Astartes in this fleet are assholes."

"Assholes?" Seiras repeated the word uncertainly.

He knew what it meant but found the term unusual as an insult. Viggo seemed fond of saying it, but he never understood why.

"What he means to say, Lord Seiras, is that you're more understanding of us normal humans from what we've seen. You are more respectful to non-Astartes than the other space marines here," Derrin quickly tried to salvage the conversation. It was clear he was concerned about them offending the librarian.

Seiras shook his head, "What makes you think that I'm any different than the other Astartes?"

Quintus shrugged and spoke sarcastically, "I don't know…maybe because you stayed behind to save us instead of leaving us die like those Imperial Fists did to half of our platoon? That tends to make people like you. Not to mention, I don't know of any other Astartes that would talk to us so casually like you are. No offense to you my lord, but a lot of the other space marines here have sticks up their asses. They won't even acknowledge us."

"Shut up private…you know you could get executed for saying something like that right? Keep your discipline in check." Derrin silenced him with deadly seriousness.

"I see…" Seiras replied slowly as his gaze trailed off. A brief, but somewhat awkward silence followed as everyone looked at him uncertainly.

Derrin quickly decided to change the subject as he spoke again, "Well anyways, it was an honour fighting beside you, Lord Seiras. On behalf of the Tempestus Scions, I just wanted to thank you for what you did. The Guard never forgets. We have your back from here on out."

Seiras did not understand why these stormtroopers were trying so hard to appeal to him, but finally he decided to reciprocate to them, "You fought well on the _Pride of the Emperor_ …better than any Guardsmen I've fought beside. Your lives had value and were worth saving. There is no need to thank me."

"We appreciate it sir. That means a lot coming from an Astartes. None of the Imperial Fists said anything other than commands to us. You really are the nicest space marine out of all the ones here," Quintus said approvingly.

"I'm not nice at all…it was an objective fact. Don't mistake my actions or my words for kindness. It's good you were useful during the mission. Few humans can keep up with Astartes. Also, I would not take offense to the Imperial Fists' attitudes. Most Astartes tend to hold mortals to the same standard as their battle brothers. They don't understand what it's like to be human. You should keep that in mind before insulting them," Seiras explained coldly.

"O-of course, sir," Quintus nodded seriously.

"Are you saying you do understand what it's like to be human?" Derrin asked.

"Not exactly, but I understand what it's like to be left behind," Seiras replied.

Derrin perked up, "Yeah, you never did tell us about that."

"My chapter brothers once left me behind on a space hulk…that's all you really need to know as the rest is classified. It served as important lesson to me. I do not like leaving others to die when I have the ability to extract them. What's the point of me being an Astartes otherwise?" the librarian said distantly.

"You're more human than I thought. You have a lot of empathy. Not even some of our leaders would see things that way." Derrin said conclusively.

Before Seiras could respond, the scion Markus spoke up, "Well I'm not sure if you know this, my lord but the Sororita that was with us is a Palatine. She's their executive officer after the Canoness Commander. You certainly know how to make friends, because she was defending you to the Inquisitor too last I saw her. Don't be surprised if the Sororitas start treating you nicer now."

' _Atia already told me that,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he nodded silently.

The scene was soon interrupted when an armoured figure came into the mess hall. The figure's footsteps were loud and clear announcing the arrival of an Astartes. To Seiras' surprise, it was Gregorius. The Black Templar wasted no time finding his way towards the librarian.

Everyone looked on with confusion and interest as the fully-armoured Black Templar approached.

"I heard you were finally released. That is good, because I need to speak with you," Gregorius spoke as he reached Seiras' table.

The librarian nodded as he stood up, "Very well…I was just finished here."

"Farewell, Lord Seiras. You're always welcome around us," Derrin waved as the librarian followed the Black Templar out of the Mess Hall.

Once they were out of the mess hall and a considerable distance down a few halls, Gregorius turned and looked at him. Though he was helmeted, Seiras knew that the templar was glaring at him, "What were you doing in there? The first thing you chose to do upon your release is get food and waste time with humans?! Have you no sense of urgency, Seiras?!"

"I actually checked on Kallius first. He seems stable now, which is good. I did not intend to be in the Mess Hall for long, but the Tempestus Scions wanted to speak with me," Seiras replied.

"You certainly have a way with snaking your way out of heresy. If I would have been returned to my chapter by Eldar, they would have sentenced me to death for heresy! You get returned to the Ordo Malleus of all things and they just brush it off like it's nothing?! Do you have any idea how suspicious that looks?!" Gregorius spat angrily.

"What's your point? I'm not you or one of your overzealous Black Templar brothers." Seiras shook his head.

The Templar immediately grabbed Seiras by his throat and pinned him against the nearby bulkhead, "You're a damn heretic, Seiras! It's bad enough that you're a filthy psyker, but you're also blatantly heretical and you think you can do whatever you want without consequences! I don't know how you manipulate everything and everyone around you but mark my words…I will not turn a blind eye to your deceptions anymore!"

"Let go…" Seiras said darkly, "before I kill you."

"You're in no position to make threats, Seiras…maybe if you would have donned your power armour sooner, then you wouldn't be in this position right now!" Gregorius hissed.

As Gregorius squeezed tightly, Seiras was immediately filled with anger. Before the templar knew what was happening he felt himself being psychically hurled into the bulkhead across the hall. His fully armoured body slammed hard against the wall leaving a huge dent. Before he could counterattack, Seiras channeled a surge of warp lightning into the Black Templar frying his power armour and forcing his incoming charge back.

The Templar growled in pain as his black armour began to crackle and burn. Nevertheless, Gregorius stubbornly tanked his way through the psychic attack as he drew his sword in to swing. Before he could hit Seiras, the librarian completely froze his body in place. The templar furiously writhed in the psychic stasis unable to move.

"If you thought attacking me without my armour was a good idea, then you're a fool! You think killing me would be that easy, Gregorius?! I tire of your petty accusations against me! IF you truly wish to see just what I'm capable of doing to you, then I'll show you, _brother_! Maybe then you'll understand why you know nothing!" Seiras ranted as he grabbed the templar by his helmet.

Charging his hands with psychic power, Seiras psychically overpowered Gregorius' mind and filled his body with an agonizing burn.

The Black Templar roared in pain as he willed himself out of the psychic stasis, he made a quick swing with his freed arm, but it stopped a mere hair's length away from Seiras' neck. Seiras psychically threw Gregorius all the way down the hallway a moment later.

"I've had enough of this," Seiras said with a dark hiss as both of his hands lit up with warpfire, "Stand down before I turn you into ash!"

Gregorius swiftly got back up and immediately came in for another charge. He made it several steps before another figure came out of nowhere and knocked him to the ground. It was none other than Viggo. The space wolf quickly restrained Gregorius as he disarmed his sword and put him in a choke hold. Seiras receded his warp powers a moment later as he approached the duo.

"What the hell do ya think you're doing, Gregorius!?" Viggo demanded with wild anger.

Seiras was somewhat relieved to see the space wolf terminator and was truly amazed at how fast he moved in his tactical dreadnought armour. Had he been several seconds slower, Gregorius would be on fire right now.

"Let me go, Viggo!" Gregorius said angrily.

"Not until you calm your crazy ass down, you bloody moron! Seiras was about to kill you!" Viggo shouted back.

It quickly became apparent that Gregorius stood no chance at wrestling free. He finally calmed himself before Viggo released his grip.

"Why are you two fighting?" Viggo finally asked as the librarian approached them.

"Gregorius picked a fight with me and I wanted to show him that if I was actually the heretic he thinks I am, then I could have easily killed him if I wanted," Seiras answered.

"By Russ, is that what this crap is about? Gregorius, I thought I told ya to get over yourself already. We're a Kill Team…a pack of brothers. We shouldn't be fighting each other like this when there's plenty of enemies out in the galaxy waiting for us. You're acting like a Blood Claw," Viggo shook his head in disapproval.

The Black Templar spoke with contempt, "None of you are my brothers…I hate the Deathwatch. Being sent here was a punishment for me. One made even worse by the likes of your heretical chapters. I have to keep the company of a mutant wolf-man astartes, a manipulative psyker, and a bunch of human-loving fools!"

"Listen ya arrogant whelp! I didn't want to join the Deathwatch either! I'd much rather be with my pack on Fenris than here. I'm sure Seiras probably feels the same too! We don't have that luxury. The Inquisition chose us, and now we're here. We're the best of our chapters, and we were chosen to represent them. So far, all you've done is shown us how stupid and annoying the Black Templars are. I'd have thought after all this time with us, you'd have gotten over your pathetic whining. Get over it and learn some damned respect, pup, or I'll throw you out an airlock!" Viggo ranted.

Seiras took a deep breath and quickly interjected, "Gregorius…we don't have many allies here. To be honest, the only ones I trust in this fleet is our Kill Team. That includes you as well. Put your hatred of us aside and see the bigger picture. We're up to our necks in trouble, and our Kill Team can't afford this type of infighting."

"He's right, Gregorius…you saw how those Grey Knights thought about putting us down didn't you? I know how their kind are. They turn on their allies at the slightest drop of a bolter round. They have it out for us because of Nogemo. The only reason they didn't do anything is because they believe we're united, and because Atia has enough common sense to not let them try and kill us. She knows we're loyal to Seiras, and she knows we as a team could slay those Grey Knights if they tried to do anything," Viggo added.

Gregorius sighed in acceptance, "I know that…"

"You're angry…I understand. We're all angry about what happened. None are as angry about Nogemo as I am…I was a fool to let this all happen. You were right, Gregorius…most of this is my fault. Continuing to press the issue on me isn't going to fix anything. What would you have me do, Gregorius? In your perfect scenario, how does this end for us? With my death? Is that really what you want? Where would you be then?! Not closer to your chapter or out of this Emperor-Forsaken sub-sector!" Seiras said strongly.

The Black Templar was silent for a moment before speaking again, "I want answers, Seiras. Why does the Inquisitor show you so much mercy? It's not normal…I was willing to overlook the Ordo Xenos trusting your xenos studies, but the Ordo Malleus is far less tolerant. It doesn't just let things go like this. At least tell me what's going on," Gregorius asked curiously.

The librarian sighed, "Atia has been merciful because I established a familiarity with her…or rather she did it to me."

"Which one is it?" Gregorius interrupted.

"Definitely the second one," Viggo said under his breath.

"She believes we're friends," Seiras answered slowly.

"I see…so you're befriending these humans like some weak, slimy politician?" Gregorius said distastefully.

"No, you fool! I'm maintaining good relations with the Inquisition and this fleet, so we don't all get executed for harboring a traitor primarch in our company! See the big picture, Gregorius!?" Seiras hissed.

Viggo looked at Seiras curiously, "So what did Inquisitor do to you exactly? Why'd she set you free?"

"Inquisitor Atia and Captain Arius psychically probed my mind and found corruption within it. They forced it out of me, and now believe I am stable," Seiras explained.

"So, you were corrupted then?" Gregorius demanded.

"Yes, I was to a certain extent…" Seiras admitted.

Gregorius was silent for a moment before asking, "And is it all gone?"

"Mostly…but I must remain vigilant at all times. That is the curse of being a psyker after all." Seiras told the truth.

"Cut him some slack, Gregorius. You'd get some corruption too if you spent a week in the Navigation chamber peering into the warp. Seiras isn't a Grey Knight...so it's hardly surprising," Viggo added.

The Black Templar huffed in disapproval, but finally nodded in acceptance, "Very well. At least you had enough honour to tell us the truth. I'll let the matter be, but you had better keep your heresy under control if you value your life."

"Shut up, pup! You're the one who should keep himself under control. You're not going to have your life much longer if you keep spouting all those threats. You wanna go around and accuse everyone of being a heretic, Gregorius, but you're the one attacking his pack here. I've known Seiras a lot longer than you, and I will stand with him if you ever try anything stupid like this again. Just remember…the lone wolf dies but the pack survives. This is the last time we're ever going to have this conversation," Viggo added.

"You've made your point...I'll give you the benefit of the doubt once again. Just don't dishonour my trust brothers. That is all I ask," Gregorius said distantly as he walked away.

Once he was gone, Viggo shook his head, "Next time we're at a watch station, I say we trade him out for a better squad member."

"I agree. I think he'd be much happier…as would I," Seiras replied.

"C'mon, Seiras, I think Nemias finally finished repairing your armour. Let's go," Viggo said enthusiastically as the two Astartes headed for their quarters.

 _ **Avenger of Terra**_ **, Hanger 5**

Upon entering their quarters, Seiras exhaled a breath of relief at the sight of tech priests and servitors busily going about one job or another. At the room's center, he saw Nemias looking over what appeared to be the librarian's power armour.

Seiras eagerly approached his Deathwatch brother alongside Viggo. The Salamander immediately noticed their arrival and spoke up, "I take it you talked your way out of custody? I was beginning to wonder if the Inquisitor was ever going to let you out."

"You and me both. How have you been this past week?" Seiras asked as he looked down at his power armour. It looked completely repaired and repainted.

"I've been fine…just staying busy with all the repairs. Everyone's power armour suffered some serious damage in the battle. The terminator armour was a painstaking repair process, but I made sure to get Decimus and Viggo's done first. Gregorius insisted that I fix his next, but he wouldn't leave me alone the entire time I was working on his. I believe he does not trust me still," Nemias sighed.

"Yeah, Gregorius doesn't seem to trust any of us...me especially," Seiras noted.

Nemias looked at Seiras concerned, "What makes you say that?"

"They got into a little scrap in the corridors a couple of minutes ago. Seiras almost killed him," Viggo explained.

The techmarine shook his head, "Well that's hardly surprising. The lunatic is honestly taking the Nogemo situation better than I thought he would. What's weird though is he didn't start acting like this until Seiras returned to the ship."

"He hates me and is confused about why the Inquisitor isn't punishing us," Seiras replied.

"Why isn't she doing anything? I find it strange that she's been so forgiving with you lately, Seiras," Decimus cut into the conversation as he walked over.

"Even I don't entirely understand. She is under the assumption that we're friends or something like that. I just tried to use it to my advantage," Seiras shrugged.

Seiras could see Viggo making air quote gestures from the corner of his eye when he said _friends_. This caused Nemias' lip to twitch slightly upward. The Salamander shook his head, "Well whatever works I suppose. I'm amazed you got through to her. A few weeks ago she seemed to hate you."

"She's just grateful for what happened after the navigators died I think. Captain Arius has also been vouching for my integrity as well," Seiras elaborated.

"Befriending Atia is a very tactical decision, Seiras. Though I would advise that you do not wholly put your faith in her. She made it clear that she doesn't like Astartes, and I would not put my life in her hands," Decimus added.

Seiras nodded, "I agree, but for now it's best to just get along and do what we're told. We didn't survive a daemon primarch and a fleet of traitor marines only to die to something foolish now."

"What happened with Gregorius, exactly? Will we able to trust him or should we keep him out of our circle?" Decimus asked.

The librarian sighed, "He's rightfully concerned about the situation, but he foolishly tried to attack me. Viggo and I made it clear that we would kill him if he turned against us ever again. I would trust him over any of the humans on this ship, but he's still a liability to our team cohesion. That is unless we can build some trust with him."

"You got that right. He's a ticking time bomb," Nemias said in agreement.

Decimus nodded, "He's a son of Rogal Dorn. Being blunt and honest with him is the best way to deal with Gregorius. Even if you threaten him or tell him things he'll disapprove of, he'll likely trust you more for it. I am the same way, though a bit less extreme than he is."

"We should keep Gregorius in the loop. I don't want to isolate him over misunderstandings. He just needs some reassurance that he can trust us...especially me," Seiras stated strongly.

"Regardless of everything else, all that's important now is you're back with us. Hopefully, Kallius will be back soon as well," Nemias said as he finished tampering with Seiras' armour.

"I visited him earlier, and he seemed to be fine. The apothecaries were performing some type of surgery on his leg. He should be functional within a few days at the most," Seiras replied.

"Hmm, well that's good news. I haven't had time to go by and see him. Still though...I wonder about that strange delirium he was in. Will he be mentally stable?" Nemias asked.

"He's fine," Seiras replied assuredly.

Nemias was silent for a moment before replying, "Well it's good that he's fine now. Perhaps I'll ask Kallius about his delirium when I see him again," Nemias noted.

"By the way, I appreciate your repairs, Nemias. How damaged was my armour? Did you encounter any trouble? I know artificer armour can be difficult to work with." Seiras changed the subject.

The techmarine shrugged, "Well, considering you're the only one with Mark IV power armour, I'd say it was a fascinating but difficult repair. I had a bit of difficulty fixing your psychic hood as well, but it should be fully functional again. Put it back on and tell me if everything is up to your standards."

A moment later, several servitors came over as they began to adorn the Astartes in his armour. After several minutes, they were finished with their duty. Nemias then held up Seiras' helmet and handed it to him, "By the way, Seiras…I've always meant to ask you this, but never really thought to bring it up until now. How did you acquire Mark IV power armour?" Nemias asked.

"My chapter found some of it on Kronus…along with a bunch of other artefacts," Seiras replied.

"He _found_ it…" Viggo chuckled.

The Salamander eyed him curiously, "The same Kronus that was attacked by the Word Bearers?"

"It didn't belong to Chaos Marines if that's what you're implying…but we did find an ancient Blood Raven armoury full of Mark IV armour. Captain Thule and I were both there. A lot of our Kronus Veterans were awarded with it. It was one of the reasons our chapter master sent us to secure the planet in the first place." Seiras answered.

"Did you know that it is Achean pattern Mark IV? It's ridiculously rare. Your power armour is more valuable than terminator armour," Nemias said slowly.

Seiras eyed him uncertainly, "I didn't know that. Our techmarines never mentioned that to us. I wasn't aware it was a unique sub pattern. We believed it was ancient artificer mark IV."

Nemias shook his head, "I did too until I took it apart a few days ago. I always knew your helmet was unique for a Mark IV pattern, but I had no idea it was an Achean pattern helmet. These were specifically designed to attach psychic hoods to the back. Yours has built it attachments with no modifications. It was made for a librarian."

"I've never heard of Achean Pattern Mark IV. What can you tell us about it Nemias?" Decimus spoke up with interest.

Nemias looked away, "Not much, unfortunately. I just know the pattern based on the records I was allowed to see during my time on Mars. A lot of it was classified for obvious reasons. There were many variations of Mark IV during the Great Crusade, so I doubt it would narrow down which founding legion this armour actually belonged too."

"You have no idea which legion used Achean Pattern Mark IV? Why would something like that be classified?" Viggo asked the techmarine.

Nemias looked at Seiras for a moment before answering Viggo, "Most Mark IV power armour is from the Horus Heresy. A lot of things from that time are classified. Though this is a great clue as to who Seiras' founding legion was. They were undoubtedly favorable to the Librarius judging by the way these helmets are made."

"What do you think, Seiras?" Viggo asked the librarian curiously.

The Blood Raven shook his head, "None of it means anything to me. There's no records or proof of the Blood Raven's primarch and founding legion. I would rather not dwell on it without more facts. Otherwise, all we're doing is speculating."

"Well regardless, Mark IV Achean armour definitely explains why you were able to take so much damage and not die from two lascannon shots. Mark IV was specifically designed with stronger ceramite protection around the torso at the cost of lower mobility. It's an ideal Mark for siege warfare and fighting other Astartes," Nemias concluded.

' _Davian…what was in those records?'_ Seiras thought to himself as his mind briefly recalled the memory of finding the ancient vault.

Before any of them could say another word, an announcement sounded over the ship, "Attention, all personnel. We are closing in on Hive World Corun. Attempts to hail the governor have not been answered. All ship personnel deploy to your sections immediately. All available Astartes, please report to the bridge."

The Astartes all perked up with a bit of excitement. Viggo's eyes widened, "Atia's calling us to the bridge? Do you think the Chaos fleet dug in here on Corun?"

"Hard to say, but we shouldn't waste time. Brothers gather up your gear. I have a feeling we're going to need it," Seiras responded.

 _ **Avenger of Terra,**_ **The Bridge**

Upon arriving to the bridge, Kill Team Calamity was fully armoured, and helmeted. They were missing Kallius and Gregorius however. None of them were surprised to see the Grey Knights at Atia's side.

Shortly after their arrival, Seiras heard several more Astartes approaching. He noticed Gregorius along with several of the Imperial Fists including Chaplain Evaldus. Part of him wondered why they hadn't returned to their strike cruiser yet, but he would probably find out later.

Despite their arrival, Atia appeared more concerned with a conversation she was having over a vox.

"This is Inquisitor Atia Castilla of the Ordo Malleus. If you do not reply to my vox hails within the next minute, I'll assume your planet has fallen to heresy and have no choice but exterminatus," she threatened.

' _Do we even have the fleet capability to perform an exterminatus right now?'_ Seiras' thoughts drifted for a moment.

As if on cue, someone finally answered her vox hails, "Inquisitor Atia, please don't! This is administrator Minucius Varus!"

Atia feistily growled into the vox, "You had better have a good reason for ignoring my fleet for the past two days, administrator! Where is the governor?!"

"I…I apologize my lady, but Governor Velina Selik was taken hostage two days ago. We haven't been able to recover her. Our long range communications have also been taken out," the nervous man replied.

"Taken hostage?! By who?! Don't you have a PDF or a Guard Regiment here?! Who took her hostage?!" Atia demanded angrily.

The frightened administrator shakily responded, "T-t-terrorists my lady. A local army of hive gangs and turncoat PDF forces are responsible."

Atia visibly deadpanned as she looked at some of the fleet officers. All of them looked appalled by the notion of hive thugs taking a planetary governor captive. It was even more astonishing because Corun was a hive world which likely would have had a good PDF army and countless Arbites.

"You've got to be kidding me. How incompetent are you?!" Atia shouted.

"Y-you don't understand, Inquisitor! T-they're too entrenched in the underhive. We've already lost tens of millions to this incident!" he pleaded.

"Do you have the docking and forge authority codes for the hive? My fleet needs to be repaired and resupplied. We need access to your forges and shipyards," Atia sighed.

"N-no…all of those authorities belong with the governor. When things started going crazy, she locked everyone out and kept the codes to herself. That's why the terrorists kidnapped her! We don't have access to the forge without her," he replied fearfully.

"And of course, you don't have any failsafes…Do you at LEAST know where their base is?" Atia hissed.

"Y-yes. Beneath the capital spire of Hive Asha. I believe they're fortified within one of the main forges near the underhive," he explained.

"I'm deploying a force to take care of your little terrorist problem, but I expect one hundred percent compliance and obedience as soon as we extract her. This planet is officially under my authority now," she said distastefully.

The administrator sounded both happy and confused, "Thank the Emperor, but what kind of force are you sending Inquisitor? Our men were getting gunned down trying to fight through the underhive. The enemy has tanks and military grade fortifications at multiple chokepoints. It's a slaughtering ground trying to squeeze through. We have the numbers, but we just can't make a breach. I've already sent millions to die trying to recover the governor."

"I'm sending my space marines…they'll take care of it." Atia said slowly before cutting off the vox broadcast.

As she turned around, Atia shook her head, "I seriously hope there's more to this than just terrorists. I have never heard of something this ridiculous. PDF are even more incompetent than I originally assumed."

"There doesn't appear to be any sign of them being affected by Fulgrim's fleet. I wonder if they were even aware of it? It doesn't seem that they received your vox broadcast when we first encountered his fleet. Though with their long range communications being knocked out, that would make sense." Admiral Hightower noted.

"Communications may very well have been blocked out by the warpstorm as well. We were on the edge of the system a week ago after all," the fleet commissar added.

Atia shook her head, "I don't know what's going on, but we need the governor back immediately. Kill Team Calamity…I'm sending you five to go rescue this dumb bitch governor. Take Chaplain Evaldus and a squad of his Imperial Fists with you too. You're in charge of the mission, Seiras. If the governor is dead, make sure you recover her access codes in any way you can. The planet is likely under anarchy right now, so don't hesitate to make examples of these so-called terrorists."

"Yes, Inquisitor," the librarian nodded.

"We should deploy by drop pod…nothing like a little shock and awe to scatter the bugs," Viggo chuckled.

Evaldus glanced at Seiras and quickly addressed him, "Librarian, I request Captain Krias accompany us. A dreadnought will prove useful in an underhive, and he is well experienced in it."

"Bring him then. Let's get to the hanger," Seiras announced. Without wasting another moment, he motioned for the others to follow him out of the bridge.

As they departed, Atia looked over at Admiral Hightower, "Bring us in orbit over hive Asha."

The Astartes all quickly made their way to one of the hangers and wasted no time getting equipped with gear before heading to the drop pods.

Kill Team Calamity minus Kallius was all present as well as Evaldus and three Imperial Fists. The venerable dreadnought, Captain Krias wasted no time arriving as well. In total there was going to be 10 of them. One dreadnought and three terminators would be more than enough to wipe out anything in an underhive. One of the Imperial Fists was also an apothecary fortunately enough.

"We need a ranged loadout for this mission but bring extra weapons in case we're dealing with more than humans," Seiras commanded.

One by one, all of the Astartes got fitted with appropriate equipment for their mission. Viggo kept his lightning claws but had an additional storm bolter added on each arm as well. Decimus kept his storm shield and traded out his power spear for an assault cannon. The minotaur also had a cyclone missile launcher attached to his armour. Nemias kept the same gear as their last mission but had one of his servo arms equipped with a plasma gun.

Gregorius and Evaldus kept the same loadout as the last mission. Two of the Imperial Fists were devastators with heavy bolters, and one was an apothecary with a narthecium, a plasma pistol, and a chain sword. The venerable dreadnought, Krias, had an assault cannon and a standard claw. Finally, Seiras himself simply brought his force sword and a storm bolter strapped onto his arm. They all offered their silent prayers to the weapons before finally getting into the drop pods.

Much to Seiras' disbelief, Viggo handed him the Nemesis Force Halberd that he had looted previously, "Oi, you forgot this, Seiras."

The librarian shook his head, "I can't deploy with a Grey Knight's weapon."

"Well you certainly had no qualms about picking it up before. Besides, if there's actually chaos on this planet, then you'll need it," Viggo chuckled.

Reluctantly, Seiras accepted the weapon as he strapped his force sword behind him. He held the Nemesis Force Halberd as his primary weapon now.

Gregorius eyed him a bit confused, "When did you get that?"

"I took it from one of the dead Grey Knights when we were escaping the _Pride of the Emperor,"_ Seiras answered honestly.

The Black Templar actually seemed to approve as he responded slowly, "Well, it's better off in our hands. We'll need someone equipped to deal with daemons if we encounter any."

"This mission is going to be a piece of cake after the last battle," Viggo said enthusiastically as the hatches closed on the drop pods.

"This might be a Chaos uprising. I wouldn't treat this with any less importance than the last mission," Seiras replied to the Space Wolf.

Nemias sighed, "I'd hate to say it, but I honestly hope there's more to this than a simple rebellion. Killing normal humans is extremely distasteful…even if they are rebels. I feel there's more going on here than that administrator told us. Why would the PDF have traitors allying with hive gangs?"

"It's a hive world…this kind of thing happens all the time," Gregorius noted.

"Do you sense anything strange about this mission, Seiras?" Decimus asked the librarian.

Seiras nodded slowly, "I do…there's a darkness in the warp over this planet. I can't tell if it's just the warpstorms, but something is seriously wrong with this world."

"Well I suppose we'll find out soon enough," Nemias concluded.

Once all of the Astartes were clipped in, a voice came over their vox, "We're flying over the hive now. I got the coordinates from the administrator for the entrance to the enemy stronghold. I'm relaying the location to your drop pods' navigation systems as we speak. There's apparently a blockade or standoff between the local PDF and these rebel terrorists at the entrance to the hive forge. Expect a lot of tanks and entrenched enemies. According to the administrator, they're keeping the governor captive in place called the Underspire. Kill everything that gets in your way. Don't even bother trying to be discreet with this mission. These fools have tested the Emperor's wrath and we need to send a message to the population in order to quell this anarchy. If you encounter variables, relay it to us and I'll send the Imperial Guard to help you. In fact, I'll probably just send them to secure Hive Asha anyway."

"Understood Inquisitor," Seiras acknowledged as their drop pods immediately deployed a moment later.

 **Corun, Lower Hive Asha**

A terrifying high velocity screech filled the skies as two drop pods shot towards the surface of hive world Corun. They landed with tremendous force causing many buildings to shatter and the terrain to crack.

The drop pods landed dead center between two entrenched sides of a firefight. Tanks were littered across the battlefield of both sides, and countless bodies could be seen. All fighting stopped upon the arrival of the drop pods causing an eerie silence to fill the battlefield.

From a considerable distance away, the local PDF officers were at a front bunker staring with widespread eyes.

A group of civilians were with them that appeared to be some type of news crew.

"Sir, what are those?!" A nearby colonel asked the PDF commander as he looked through the battlefield display screen.

"Drop Pods…" the older man said disbelievingly.

"Get out there and start recording!" one of the civilians yelled at the rest of the news crew.

Without warning, the hatches opened, and Kill Team Calamity's drop pod began firing towards the enemy from mounted bolters at the top.

As usual, Decimus was the first one out. The Minotaur immediately opened fire with his assault cannon blowing apart an entire column of rebel defenses. Entire buildings collapsed from the incredible weapon's firepower as it tore through a number of nearby tanks and enemies.

He charged forward, holding his storm shield up to block incoming tank fire. The rest of the team quickly fell behind him with Viggo moving to the front as well. The Space Wolf wildly fired his storm bolters into the enemy force blowing apart everything with incredible accuracy and savagery. He then easily ripped through a tank with his lightning claws that was unfortunate enough to be in his way.

A barrage of missiles fired out of Decimus' Cyclone missile launcher blasting away even more enemy ranks and vehicles as the other Astartes filed into a tight formation. As the two juggernaut terminators pressed forward, the other Astartes all fell in line behind them methodically annihilating everything in sight.

Several tanks made suicidal drives for the team but were easily stopped by Krias. The Dreadnought unleashed terrifying firepower in conjunction with the Imperial Fist devastators which quickly destroyed everything within range of them.

"SPACE MARINES!? RUN!" Seiras heard a nearby man cry as he attempted to flee the superhumans' advancing onslaught.

The Astartes killed everything without hesitation and wasted no time breaking through the enemy fortifications. Men and women died by the thousands as the space marines effortlessly and tirelessly advanced. Despite their martial superiority in killing their way through, the real success in this advance came from the demoralization of the enemy. The rebels that lived long enough to see that space marines were attacking them all tried to flee or give up.

Seiras felt some remorse in slaughtering them as many people were actually holding their hands up to surrender. Even they were murdered by the Astartes, which only seemed to demoralize the enemy even more. This continued for several hours as they progressed further into the hive.

Eventually, the team reached the entrance to the Underspire. It was heavily fortified with two baneblades in front.

Seiras was surprised that they had access to tanks of that caliber, and immediately voiced his concern, "Hold!"

The two massive tanks had their barrels pointed towards the opening where the Astartes were approaching.

"We need a plan to take out those baneblades. They're waiting for us," Seiras said seriously as the group stopped.

Evaldus looked at him curiously, "You don't think we have the firepower to take out two baneblades?"

"We do, but I wouldn't recommend walking into that ambush they have waiting for us. I have experience fighting the Imperial Guard, and I know what those tanks are capable of. There's a better way to handle this without wasting all of our heavy munitions or risking an error. Everyone remain here for now. I'm going in alone for this," Seiras announced.

As the librarian advanced alone, the others all voice their concerns.

"What are you doing, Seiras?" Gregorius half-demanded.

The librarian spoke over their vox calmly, "I can handle this. Just watch, and be ready to move in after I take care of the tanks."

"He's lost his mind…" Gregorius said shaking his head.

"I know what he's going to do…I've seen him do this before," Decimus stated calmly.

The Astartes squad all watched with anticipation as their librarian walked into the clearing and got closer to the baneblades. They all seemed a bit surprised that the tanks hadn't fired on him yet.

"Why aren't they shooting him?!" Gregorius said disbelievingly as Seiras walked into their line of fire.

"It's an illusion…he's filling their minds with false images," Decimus explained.

A moment later, one of the baneblades turned its weapons towards a heavily entrenched bunker full of enemies. It immediately blew it apart before turning towards another one and doing the same. Shortly afterward, the two baneblades turned their weapons towards each other and opened fire. Both tanks unloaded heavy firepower into each other for a full minute. Eventually, one managed to destroy the other with a few lucky shots.

The nearby surviving rebels that were bunkered down all around the perimeter immediately started opening fire on Seiras once they realized he was there causing it. This broke the librarian's focus as he moved to take cover behind the ruined Baneblade.

The remaining baneblade was heavily damaged now, but it was still functional. It immediately fired a massive barrage in Seiras' direction preventing him from doing anything other than take cover.

The librarian saw a host of rebels running towards him from an opposing direction. Some started firing rocket launchers. He held up a psychic barrier to negate the blasts and followed up with a maelstrom of psychic lightning which brutally murdered a chunk of the enemies.

Seiras dove away a second later as the surviving baneblade circled around attempting to blast him again. As he circled around and came back into its line of sight, Seiras focused on the driver and gunners of the tank. He released a powerful psychic scream in their minds causing the baneblade's guns to jerk in random directions, narrowly missing him as they fired again.

With his psychic might, he easily destroyed the minds of the men within the baneblade causing it to skid to a halt and stop moving.

Gregorius and the others took this time to advance, and quickly assisted in wiping out any remaining forces nearby.

Once the fighting was over, the Black Templar ran over to Seiras, "For the record, my xenophase blade could have torn through these tanks. We also have a dreadnought with us in case you forgot. Still...good work."

Seiras was a bit surprised that Gregorius was being halfway civil, but said nothing in response as the Astartes all moved towards the entrance to the Underspire.

"Let's keep on moving. This looks like the place. Nemias send in servo skulls to map the area and try to hack into their network so we can lock this spire down," Seiras replied as the Astartes all regrouped.

The Salamander nodded as he walked over to a nearby terminal and began to work on it.

"That was an interesting tactic librarian," Evaldus said as he glanced at Seiras.

"I've learned my lesson fighting those things. The tanks are formidable, but the men inside are not," the librarian replied.

"Take your team in from here, librarian. We'll hold the entrance and prepare the extraction," Evaldus stated calmly.

Seiras nodded at the chaplain, "Very well. We shouldn't be long."

"I found them, Uploading the coordinates now," Nemias spoke up urgently.

"Let's go!" Viggo howled enthusiastically as he charged forward taking point.

 **Corun Underhive, Underspire Forge**

"Governor Velina, I'm getting tired of this…give me access to the forge now!" a hive gang leader shouted angrily at the captive governor.

To his sides stood multiple gang lieutenants and PDF traitors. The governor grimaced in pain as the gang boss backhanded her as hard as possible, "I'm not playing with you anymore you bitch! Give me access or I'll murder your entire family!"

"You won't get away with this. The Imperium will send an Imperial Guard Regiment to kill you all if you don't surrender now!" The governor threatened.

The gang boss grabbed her by her cheeks in one hand and glared hatefully at the woman, "Maybe until they find out why we're rebelling in the first place! You'll never get away with what you've done you selfish cunt! Not even the Emperor could save you!"

Kalen, we have a problem boss. I've been getting some disturbing feedback through our checkpoints for the past few minutes," one of the hive gang lieutenants interrupted the man fearfully.

"What is it, Ice?!" the man asked his female lieutenant.

"Listen to the vox," she said fearfully as she turned it on.

"ARRRRGHHHH!" a scream came over the vox along with the sound of a devastating explosion. It was quickly followed by the sound of bolter fire.

The gang boss looked disturbed by the sounds as a nearby PDF rebel found the video footage of where the vox was broadcasting from.

"Here, sir...this is the video footage of that checkpoint," the PDF rebel officer stated urgently.

Everyone in the room stared with absolute terror when they saw Space Marines charging through an entrenched area. Men and women were being blown in half by single shots from bolter rounds, and the tanks and heavy weapons present seemed to do little against the power armour of the Terminators in the front. The hive boss, Kalen, gulped when he saw the video footage pan over to the entrance of the underspire forge.

"S-s-sir…th-they're o-outside!" one of the rebel PDF men shrieked in disbelief.

"A-are those space marines?!" another person asked for confirmation.

"Bullshit! Space Marines aren't real! They're imperial propaganda!" Kalen said angrily.

"Well they made it past all of our defenses...somehow. This is impossible! Are those actually Astartes?!" a PDF traitor said disbelievingly.

"I didn't sign up to fight space marines Kalen! We're in over our heads! We gotta get out of here before they show up!" another gang lieutenant said fearfully as he tried to make his way towards an exit.

As he tried to open a door, he soon got an error message over the screens of a nearby monitor. "The doors are all locked down. How did they get access to our security system?!"

"We're fucked!" Ice, the female lieutenant said with a horrified expression.

"Why are we only now hearing about this shit!? How did they get through the checkpoints without us knowing about it?!" Kalen said fearfully.

"This is Kalen, someone fucking report what's going on?!" the hive gang leader shouted into his vox.

A response came a few moments later, "Kalen, get out of there! Drop pods landed outside! Space marines showed up and just started killing everything! We couldn't stop them!"

"Someone get that fucking door open! We have to get out of here!" Kalen said urgently as his lieutenants worked to break out of the room.

The governor formed a smug look on her face, "Too late for you, Kalen...The Emperor has come to save me after all."

It didn't take long for the sound of heavy clanking footsteps to come within their hearing range. Doing the only thing he could think of, Kalen grabbed the governor and pointed a gun towards her head as he backed into a corner.

Moments later glowing lightning claws pierced through the doors of their bunkered headquarters, which was quickly followed by five Astartes charging in.

Kill Team Calamity were all present but were without the Imperial Fist escort.

Upon seeing the space marines, the hive gang leader immediately addressed them, "Stay the fuck back! One step closer and I'll blow her damn head off!"

"So what," Gregorius said heartlessly as he took a step forward.

"I mean it! Come any closer and she's dead!" Kalen shouted as he positioned himself directly behind Governor Velina for protection.

"Kalen, just stop..." Ice said terrified.

"Fuck that! This bitch doesn't get to walk away after what she's done!" Kalen said emotionally with hateful eyes.

Everyone else in the room, minus Kalen immediately held their hands up to surrender.

"It's over, Kalen...you lost. If you kill me, then you'll doom the entire planet!" Velina exclaimed.

"The Governor is a fucking cunt and is the only person with access to the forge! They're not on her person…they're in her head. If I kill her, then nobody has access to the forge or the orbital shipyard! You're going to let us go, or I'm going to blow her brains out!" Kalen threatened as he glared at the Astartes.

Seiras motioned for the others to back away for a moment as he remained there. Kalen looked terrified as the librarian's psychic powers began to radiate off his own body. The gang leader felt his arm twist upward and snap a moment later. The man's pistol was easily ripped from his grip as he was forced against a wall. He let out a horrific screech as his arm was now broken.

The governor immediately ran to Seiras for protection as the librarian telekinetically squeezed the man as hard as possible. "P-please! NO! She's guilty! This isn't right!"

The force from being psychically squeezed against a wall eventually caused the man's entire body to start hemorrhaging as a nasty pop filled the room. Afterward, the man's corpse exploded fell over in a bloody mess.

Seiras turned around and then cut the rest of the rebels into pieces with his Nemesis Force Halberd. The only person still alive from his attack was the gang lieutenant, Ice. She had been wise enough to dive to the ground before his attack.

"Thank the Emperor, his mighty angels of death have come to rescue me from this nightmare!" Governor Velina exclaimed with relief as she clutched onto the librarian tightly again.

"Governor Velina Selik?" Seiras asked confirming her identity.

The woman nodded eagerly, "Yes, yes! Did the others send help for Corun? Thank the Emperor you've arrived. This rebellion has been going on for months! I wasn't sure we'd be able to get help with the warp storms coming and going for the past year. These horrible thugs kidnapped me two days ago with the help of traitor PDF rebels. Our long range communications were knocked out as well. I was beginning to lose hope until you arrived."

"Why were you taken captive? What did these rebels hope to achieve?" Nemias asked as he walked over.

"These…these animals started a rebellion against the hive nobility and took me captive in the hopes they could supply a full-scale army from the forge! Thank the Emperor you arrived when you did, I don't know if I could have held out much longer," she said in an overdramatic and posh way. She appeared to be injured as well as she nearly fell over from Seiras turning to walk away.

The governor fell onto him as he moved and let out a pathetic moan, "Ughh…I'm sorry, my leg was badly hurt from these fiends. I-I don't know if I can walk."

Seiras ignored the governor's damsel antics as he glanced down at the silent, surviving gang member.

"Don't listen to her! That woman is a liar! She's been selling-" Ice never got to finish her sentence as Gregorius blew her head off.

"I don't care why this is happening. Let's get out of here, Seiras! I'm not interested in investigating some pointless rebellion!" the Black Templar hissed impatiently.

The librarian nodded, "Yeah, let's go."

"Ughh," the governor grimaced as she stumbled again.

' _This woman is pathetic,'_ Seiras thought distastefully.

"I don't want to be presumptuous but can one of you assist me?" the governor asked pleadingly.

Viggo and Nemias exchanged looked with one another before staring at Seiras. The librarian reluctantly accepted he was going to have to do it.

' _I wonder what that hive gangster was talking about? Ah whatever…this isn't our problem. I don't care about the politics of some planet I'll never see again. The sooner we're out of this sub-sector, the better.'_ Seiras mentally sighed as he picked the governor up and placed her on his back. She sat somewhat uncomfortably behind his psychic hood and over his power pack.

"I'm so amazed the Emperor's angels came to rescue me," the governor said in her damsel tone.

The Astartes all ignored her much to the woman's disapproval during the swift descent towards the entrance.

As they exited the Underspire, Velina looked even more amazed to see additional space marines there and quickly spoke up with confusion, "Lord Space Marine, who sent you to rescue me from here? I honestly wasn't expecting this kind of a response. I would have been relieved with an Imperial Guard Regiment…but Astartes?! The Emperor himself was truly looking out for me. I am so blessed to be protected by you holy angels."

"Inquisitor Atia Castilla of the Ordo Malleus sent us. We're part of her task force that recently battled an enemy fleet in this system," Seiras finally answered her.

"An enemy fleet? Was it aliens?!" she gasped anxiously.

Seiras was quick to notice her tone about aliens. _'She's acting very suspicious. Why would she assume xenos as the first option? I doubt she knows we're Deathwatch.'_

"The Ordo Malleus does not specialize in hunting aliens, so no it wasn't. That falls under the Ordo Xenos. We're technically a part of the Ordo Xenos, but we're currently under the command of Inquisitor Atia," Nemias elaborated for the governor.

"I see, well you have my eternal gratitude nonetheless. Please take me from this forsaken place," Velina exclaimed.

The group wasted no time backtracking through the hive towards an extraction point. One of the Imperial Fists had already called in some thunderhawks to pick up their drop pods and the Astartes. Most of the return trip was spent in absolute silence.

The Astartes would occasionally speak to one another through personal vox exchanges, but nothing that the Governor could hear. She would sometimes ask them questions, but they all ignored her for the most part.

They encountered very little resistance on the return, but easily wiped out a few remaining enemies that tried to kill the governor. Seiras was particularly aware of the fact that they had all been aiming for her, and not the Astartes.

' _She must have really done something terrible to warrant this kind of a rebellion. These people are sacrificing their lives for a chance to kill her,'_ Seiras thought as he shot a group of suicidal charging enemies.

As they exited the hive, and returned to their original landing location, the Astartes saw their thunderhawks waiting. That wasn't the only thing they saw waiting unfortunately. To his utter disbelief, Seiras saw an enormous gathering of people lining the streets as dozens of servo skulls flew over his head.

"They saved the governor! The Emperor's angels saved the governor!" Seiras heard a very loud broadcast go over the local area. More servo skulls flew over and began to record the Astartes as they continued.

Seiras soon felt a strange sense of dread when he looked over the edge of the nearby buldings and spotted a massive screen. It was recording them live. Seiras immediately began to start walking faster. The others quickly followed suit as well when they became aware of it.

"Looks like we've got reporters coming over here," Nemias said calmly in their personal vox channel as dozens of individuals ran over to the Astartes. They began to swarm around Seiras in particular who had the governor on his back still.

"Governor Velina! Do you have anything you want to say to the press about this incredible rescue?!" a rabid and excited reporter asked the woman.

"All I can say, is the Emperor truly cares about each and every one of us. In my darkest hour of need, his angels came to save me. Stay faithful, citizens of Corun! The Emperor has not forsaken us!" Velina exclaimed.

"Governor, word has it that an Inquisitor is orbiting the planet. Will you be meeting with her today?" the news reporter asked.

"Of course, I intend to be accommodating. However, I must ensure my injuries are attended to first," the governor said again in her damsel tone.

"Many people are wondering if the rebel leader was killed during your rescue? How much longer can we expect this rebellion to last now that an Inquisitor is here?" another reporter chimed in as the mob followed the disinterested Astartes.

"I will of course address the public on that matter within the next day. For now, I encourage everyone to return to your homes and remain calm. For the record though, the rebel leader was punished for his insolence by the Emperor's angels. Let it be known that all traitors of Corun will suffer the same fate unless they surrender immediately," the governor said haughtily.

One of the reporters seemed to be acting bold as she tried to ask Seiras a question now, "Lord Space Marine! Many are in awe of your holy presence here! Do you have anything you would like to say to the humble and grateful people of Corun?"

"No," Seiras answered bluntly as he almost knocked the reporter over during his advance.

The Servo skulls were starting to stress the librarian out now as they all got close to his head. They were focusing on the governor who made a smile from his back towards the cameras. She must have been posing, because he could feel her shuffling around.

' _Almost to the thunderhawk…_ ' Seiras thought relieved as they reached the gunships. All of the Astartes quickly got onboard before the gunships took off.

"Inquisitor Atia, we have the governor. She's alive," Seiras spoke into a vox channel.

"Oh, I know…the global news hasn't stopped talking about it since you guys walked outside," Atia responded.

' _Global news? Ughh…this reminds me of Meridian,'_ Seiras mentally sighed.

"Where are we bringing the governor? Back to the ship or her palace?" the librarian asked.

"Bring her to the palace, I've already made myself comfortable here," Atia replied with amusement.

Seiras felt dread as their thunderhawks turned towards the central spire of Hive Asha. It didn't take long for their thunderhawks to arrive. Upon arrival, they noticed a lot of the Tempestus Scions had taken up guard over the palace, and that a number of Astartes were also present including some of the White Templars and Imperial Fists.

Seiras finally put the Governor down, as a number of medical personnel ran over to assist her. She waved them away when she saw Atia approach with Arius and Regulus at her sides. Both Grey Knights had their gazes focused on Seiras and the Nemesis Force Halberd in his hand.

As she approached, the Inquisitor eyed the governor up and down and crossed her arms, "You better have a good reason for the sorry state of this planet, Governor Selik."

"I-I do, Inquisitor. May I request a formal introduction my lady?" she asked.

"Inquisitor Atia Castilla of the Ordo Malleus," Atia introduced herself without unfolding her arms.

The governor nodded, "Well, my lady…you have my eternal gratitude for rescuing me. My planet is at your disposal. Whatever you need, just let me know and it's yours. It would be my honour to help the Inquisition in any way I can."

"Why is there a rebellion on this planet?" Atia asked suspiciously.

The governor frowned as she answered, "The local hive gangs all united and tried to overthrow the government here on Corun. I don't know how, but they convinced many PDF men and women to join them. It's all so horrible, but I think it might have something to do with xenos. There have supposedly been sightings in the lower hives. They might have poisoned the minds of those people with insidious ideas."

"What's that sound like to you, Seiras?" Atia asked the librarian who was standing directly behind Velina.

The governor turned and looked directly at the librarian as he spoke, "Eldar. I saw a similar situation on Meridian once. The Aeldari are known for spreading discord in large human populations like this."

"Interesting…there were indeed Eldar in this system not too long ago." Atia said as she glanced back at the governor.

"Please, allow me to host a grand ball in your honour, my lady. I will gather all the planetary leaders and we can discuss appropriate action once you've formally met the nobility," Velina suggested anxiously.

Atia seemed amused as she smiled, "A grand ball, you say? Well I suppose I could indulge in one. Send word, and we'll have it tomorrow night."

"At once, my lady! Please forgive my departure, but I must see to my injuries," Velina said as she walked away with her medical assistance.

Once she was gone, Atia looked at Kill Team Calamity, "You guys are experts on Xenos. I'm counting on you primarily for figuring this mystery out. For now, remain at the palace. Also…you're all attending that ball with me."

"She's hosting a grand ball? What does that mean?" Viggo asked Nemias uncertainly.

The techmarine shook his head, "It's some type of ceremony I assume. I doubt she was referring to an actual spherical ball, Viggo."

"A ball is a formal dance party where a bunch of rich nobles dress up lavishly, talk about politics, and kiss each other's asses. I don't expect any of you to dress up or dance. I just want you all there since you're xenos experts and you can easily figure out what these pompous idiots know. I'll probably have the Sororitas there too. I have no doubt that there are many traitors here still. The bolter bitches have a way with finding heretics," Atia explained before walking away.

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Well here's another chapter for you loyal readers that made it this far. They finally made it to Corun, but things aren't getting any better. As that old saying goes: "The only easy day was yesterday." This planet is not what it seems, and soon our heroes will be well aware of that fact. I'm sure it's fairly obvious what's coming next but stay tuned for the epic reveal.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Raiders**

 **Corun Asha Hive, Capital Spire Palace**

The past day had been relatively uneventful despite their arrival onto Corun. Seiras and his Deathwatch brothers spent the majority of their time scoping out the palace for hidden clues. The five Astartes walked into an open plaza as they followed Seiras.

"Twenty-eight hours, and not a single clue as to what's been going on here. This place is making me paranoid. It's too pristine and their records are too perfect to be legitimate. The governor and her court are definitely hiding something," Nemias said displeased.

Seiras closed his eyes for a moment as he stopped walking. A moment later, he felt a vision coming through his senses. Shadows were all he could see at first. They seemed to be scaling the walls of buildings as they attacked people in the streets. A horrific howling sound followed them. Seiras focused more intensely on the vision as he tried to identify what was happening. His vision ended a moment later.

He growled in frustration as he returned to his senses, "I keep having visions of shadows climbing the walls…and this loud terrible sound. I can't peer any further. The warp is too unstable."

"Did you just say shadows climbing walls?" Nemias' voice was audibly concerned.

The librarian turned towards the Salamander and nodded, "That's right…does that make any sense to you?"

"I am not too keen on deciphering visions, Seiras. Though I'm still not discounting that there might be a daemon infestation on this world," Nemias replied.

"If there were daemons here, then we would have learned about them by now," Viggo shook his head.

"Not necessarily Viggo. The warpstorm makes it impossible to really track anything here. They're also known for causing warp anomalies on nearby planets. I only hope that it doesn't open a gateway," Seiras sighed.

Gregorius shook his head, "You don't think it's Eldar? I mean we know they were in the system. We also know that they can cause situations like this on Imperial worlds."

"I haven't dismissed the possibility, but it just wouldn't make sense. The Eldar just helped us against Fulgrim. What would they have to gain by disrupting the order of this planet?" Seiras asked.

The Black Templar shrugged, "Why don't you ask them yourself? You are the Eldar expert after all. Don't you have that little spirit stone you could talk to?"

Seiras reflexively reached down for the stone that used to hang on his waist. It was unsurprisingly not there, but the others all eyed him with curiosity when they saw it was missing.

"Where is that stone?" Gregorius asked seriously.

"The Eldar took it," Seiras answered slowly.

Nemias looked at him concerned, "That's not good. You had that stone for a long time, didn't you? There's no telling how much information they gained on Astartes and the Deathwatch having retrieved it."

"They already know a lot about Astartes, Nemias. The Eldar on that ship even knew how to take my armour off," Seiras explained.

"What?!" Gregorius interrupted.

The librarian glanced at him and decided to explain himself, "They removed it to heal my wounds and put it back on when they were finished."

"You haven't spoken much about what happened over on that ship, Seiras," Decimus finally entered the conversation.

"The Eldar wanted that spirit stone that I had. It was supposedly an Autarch from the craftworld that crashed into Typhon Primaris. Apparently, his life was very valuable to them and they allowed me to live for saving him I believe," the librarian elaborated half of the truth.

Gregorius calmed down a moment later, "That…actually does make sense. Though I'm surprised they would have any honour in a situation like that."

"I was too, honestly. I tortured that Eldar in the spirit stone a lot when I first got it. I wonder what he's told them of me," Seiras trailed off as he recalled the memory with Kalyra in a Wraithlord.

"I suppose there's no point in dwelling on it now. When is Kallius coming back?" Gregorius changed the subject after everyone went silent for a moment.

Viggo shook his head, "Who knows. Probably a few days at the most. If we're lucky, he'll show up soon."

"He's lucky he gets to miss out on this stupid Grand Ball that we have to go to," Seiras said with disgust.

Nemias nodded in agreement, "I have to say that I am not looking forward to that. I am not a fan of the way these aristocrats crush the people beneath them. They live lavishly while the masses suffer. It's inefficient and immoral. I have never liked hive worlds."

"When are we supposed to go to that event anyway?" Decimus interjected.

"Probably soon, it's been over a day. I'm sure Atia will show up and let us know. If we're lucky, she'll forget," Seiras replied.

As if on cue, they all heard a vox transmission coming over their personal channel, "Where are you guys at? I told you to come to the ball! Did you get lost or something?! We're in the Grand Dining Hall on the top floor of the palace!"

"Oh, bloody hell…ask and ye shall receive haha," Viggo said with a light chuckle.

"Is that event happening now?" Seiras replied to Atia in the vox.

"Yeah it is. Get your oversized asses over here so I can scare the shit out of these pompous noble bootlickers," Atia commanded.

"We're on our way," Seiras begrudgingly responded as the five Astartes made their way towards the palace.

Once the vox transmission ended, Seiras audibly groaned, "This is a waste of time!"

"Relax, Seiras. Maybe there'll be booze and food," Viggo said hopefully.

"Why would that matter? It's not like you can get drunk from anything except Mjød," Nemias chuckled.

The Space Wolf moaned longingly, "It's been so long since I last drank anything…Almost six months without any Fenrisian Ale! They better have some good food there, or I might go crazy."

"If we all survive this crusade with the Ordo Malleus, then I'll have some Fenrisian Ale with you, Viggo. I could use some alcohol right now," Seiras said as his thoughts trailed off.

"The last thing you need is a distracted mind," Gregorius muttered disapprovingly.

"I'll hold ya to that, ya bloody magpie!" Viggo laughed heartily.

"We shouldn't delay. The sooner we get this Grand Ball nonsense over with, the sooner we can return to our investigation," Gregorius interrupted.

"Let's make haste then," Seiras nodded.

 **Grand Ball, Corun Capital Spire**

"According to the map layout, the next room is our destination," Nemias said calmly as the five Astartes approached two massive doors at the end of a long corridor.

Many armed guards were manned outside of it. They all quickly stood aside for the Astartes as the large doors automatically opened. Upon stepping inside, Seiras felt a sense of disgust wash over him.

The room was magnanimous. It was ridiculously large with massive windows overlooking the spire below. This room was possibly one of the highest parts of the entire hive. Many decorations adorned the room ranging from crystal chandeliers, ornate statues, beautiful tapestries, fountains, and much more.

At the center of this colossal room, dozens if not even hundreds of people were conversing with one another. Their ages ranged from young children to elderly figures, and many appeared to be in family groups by the looks of it. They had countless servants and attendants waiting at their hand and foot to bring food and drink.

Some people were dancing, and many others were simply just talking. A large orchestra of musicians were playing instruments at one side of the room, adding an ambient sound that screamed pomposity and nobility.

Seiras quickly looked around to see if he could spot the Grey Knights. When he saw they weren't there, he began to wonder if Atia wasn't there either. Before the space marines had a chance to do anything, the entire room went dead silent when they saw them walking in.

The only sound that could be heard were the loud stomping thuds of their boots. The room's inhabitants had awestruck and gawking stares as the five Astartes got closer. They were all wearing their helmets currently, which seemed to greatly intimidate everyone within immediate range.

"Ah there they are! Allow me to introduce my Deathwatch Astartes to you all," Atia's voice finally sounded.

Seiras and the others all watched with silence as the Inquisitor came walking over towards them. She was wearing an incredibly beautiful dress and had her makeup on. Seiras couldn't help but think how fragile she looked in that state. To her sides were the Governor Velina Selik, and a feeble looking nobleman which Seiras immediately assumed was the administrator.

The governor was also wearing a ridiculously ornate and fancy ball gown. She had an abundance of makeup on and reminded Seiras of a doll. The administrator was wearing something equally as distasteful to him.

"Come, come!" the governor waved for the Astartes to follow her and Atia over to a small gathering of what Seiras could only assume were the most elite aristocracy members in the room.

Following behind them, Seiras took this time to examine the oversized magnanimous ball room in more detail. He felt a sickening disgust at how weak, fragile, and ridiculous everything looked. From the massive chandeliers to the flamboyant clothing the nobles were wearing, he couldn't stand any of it. Everything looked like it was made out of glass, stone, and other weak materials.

This room looked so fragile, that he was concerned about the possibility of breaking anything he touched. The people looked even more pathetic if that was even possible. None had the proper physiques of real warriors and quite a few even had excess body fat. Seiras couldn't help but think how abhorrent it was that some of these people were able to get fat while billions on the planet starved. He believed in survival of the fittest, but these people couldn't survive a power outage, let alone going hungry for a week and fighting off an aggressor.

Maintaining his calmness however, he walked behind the governor towards the group of prominent nobles. They all perked up with sheer astonishment at the giant superhumans.

"Inquisitor Atia, my lady! You do us such an amazing and blessed honour to bring holy angels to our beloved world," one woman said in the most over-exaggerated posh tone imaginable.

' _How were Arius and Regulus able to get out of this stupid nonsense?! I don't see them anywhere.'_ Seiras thought annoyed.

"These are the incredible angels that rescued you, your grace?" one of the nobles asked the governor.

"I saw them on the news. That one in the front is the one who carried you!" Another man spoke up with amazement.

"Oh, would you look at that…I am getting called over to speak to the general. I'll be back, but in the meantime, my Astartes will keep you all company," Atia said with a cheery smile.

' _Why would she do this to me?! This couldn't get any worse.'_ Seiras thought annoyed.

"Oh, and you all should probably take off your helmets. This isn't a masquerade, it's rude to not show your faces at these types of events," Atia added before smugly leaving them alone with the nobles.

The governor and her nobles all stared at the space marines with anticipation. The Astartes all reluctantly removed their helmets in front of the nobility. Nemias' came off first. His dark skin and red eye were visibly frightening to the nobles, but they calmed down a moment later when he smiled warmly.

Decimus was next to take off his helmet. The Terminator had a fearsome appearance, and his tattoos caused a similar reaction. Gregorius was third to do so. His face, while handsome, still had burn marks which was a sign of concern to the fragile nobles. Viggo was fourth, and his was the most frightening of all. The nobles visibly gasped when they saw his yellow eyes and fangs.

"Now now, don't be scared. I'm just a Space Wolf," Viggo tried to reassure them with a grin.

The nobles were still a bit shaken, but they calmed down as they anxiously awaited Seiras' face reveal. The librarian was the last to take off his helmet as he had to unhook his psychic hood from it first. As he pulled off his helmet, his silver locks flowed out, and his sea-green eyes shined brightly. The librarian wasn't even trying to hide his unhappiness as he blatantly glared at the nobles with unfiltered disdain.

They all shrunk under his gaze as Seiras began to psychically probe their minds. One man's thoughts were extremely easy to read, _"Why is he looking at us like that?! Did we offend them somehow? I must have forgotten to address something."_

" _We shouldn't have overreacted to their appearances. He looks offended,"_ another woman thoughts sounded in his head.

The governor's thoughts were a bit harder to read, and Seiras couldn't exactly force his way in without being obvious. He did hear her surface thoughts however, _"They're all so terrifying and beautiful in a way."_

"Please, great angels, I apologize if we offended you. It is a great honour to be in the presence of the Emperor's Angels of Death. You are all so frightening…and yet comforting to look upon. We are truly humbled by your presence here tonight," the governor finally broke the awkward silence.

Seiras did not respond to them as he simply glanced over to where Atia was at. He saw her glance in their direction with an amused grin.

"That is quite alright, Governor Selik. We get these kinds of reactions a lot. Astartes are not meant to be beautiful," Nemias tried to be friendly.

"Oh but you are! Forgive us my lords. This is all just so overwhelming for us," one noblewoman exclaimed dramatically. A moment later, one of her servants began to fan her face.

' _Why is she acting so exerted?'_ Seiras thought annoyed.

"Allow me to introduce the Duke Rodrick Sebastian III, my Adminatrator Karlos Avenicci, and the Countess Jessika Vandenheim," the governor introduced the most prominent looking nobles there. Seiras immediately began to ignore her as she continued introducing more of them.

' _I suppose we have to be civil for now...but I really don't care who these people are,'_ Seiras sighed mentally.

He zoned off mentally as the introductions continued for about another minute. He tuned back in a moment later when the introductions were finally over.

"We would love to know your names, great Astartes. You are all the heroes of Corun. I still can't believe how fortunate I was to be saved by Space Marines form those vile rebel terrorists! I am truly humbled." Velina remarked with a posh moan.

"About that, governor, do you seriously have no idea why the people rebelled in the first place? Surely they were upset about something." Nemias asked.

Velina shook her head, "I-I can't even say. They were all vile heretics who sought to usurp Corun for some evil agenda. We truly do not know my lords."

"You mentioned Xenos were possibly involved?" Seiras finally spoke for the first time to them.

The woman stared at him with an unusual expression. It was almost as if she was distracted. Fortunately for her, one of the other nobles answered Seiras, "My lord, there were rumors of xenos and mutants collaborating to overthrow the planet, but that was never proven."

Seiras looked at Velina somewhat annoyed by her staring, "What is it, governor?"

"Oh, forgive me…I didn't mean to stare," she replied shyly.

Viggo and Nemias immediately traded amused looks with one another as Gregorius facepalmed. Seiras already knew what was going on, but part of him wanted to deny it, _'This better not be what I think it is.'_

"Why were you staring?" Seiras asked her with a stoic look.

Velina looked away, "Forgive me, it's just you're-" she couldn't finish her sentence, but she didn't even need to.

Before anyone could say another word, Atia finally walked back over and interrupted, "I'm back everyone. Have my Astartes introduced themselves to you yet, Governor Velina?"

"N-no," the woman trailed off as Atia stood directly next to Seiras.

"Introduce yourselves, all of you," the inquisitor stated authoritatively.

"I'm Nemias of the Salamanders Chapter. I hail from Nocturne and I am a techmarine," the Salamander went first.

"Viggo, I'm a Space Wolf like I said. I'm from Fenris," Viggo followed.

"Gregorius of the Black Templars. My home is none of your concern," the Black Templar said coldly.

Decimus looked at Seiras before speaking up next, "Decimus, Captain of the Minotaurs…Terran-born."

"You were born on Terra?!" one of the noblemen exclaimed with awe at the massive terminator. He nodded simply.

Seiras knew about Decimus being a captain, but he had no idea he was Terran born. The librarian rose a brow curiously, "I didn't know you were Terran-born, Decimus.

"I didn't know you were a captain," Nemias said surprised.

"Is it really that surprising, Nemias? I am 380 years old," the Terminator said bluntly.

As the techmarine and the terminator got into a brief conversation, the governor focused her attention on Seiras who had yet to introduce himself.

"What about you, my lord?" she asked.

"I'm Seiras…Epistolary Librarian of the Blood Ravens First Company. I'm from Sub-sector Aurelia," he finally answered.

"I've heard of sub-sector Aurelia. It's in the Korianis Sector, right? Do you hail from Meridian my lord?" one of the noblewomen asked.

"No…Calderis," he replied.

The noblewoman's face visibly cringed, "Isn't that a world of savages infested with green skins!?"

"Yes, it is…most natives don't even have power or running water." Seiras said as he glared at her.

"Space Marines are typically recruited from death worlds and feral planets…just so you all know," Atia interrupted.

"Are they really? How fascinating. I suppose surviving such unbearable living conditions would harden one's chances of survival. Still I can't even imagine the suffering you've all endured up until now," Velina said understandingly.

"Anyways, now that introductions are done, you may all disperse. Go and mingle with the aristocrats while I conduct some business with the governor here," Atia announced as she dismissed everyone away.

Seiras immediately took this opportunity to get away from the nobles as he walked away from the crowded area. The others all went their various ways to do one thing or another. Viggo's first stop was the food displays, where he immediately began to eat from.

Nemias and Decimus were both having a conversation with each other further away from prying ears, and Gregorius was brooding hatefully in a corner as he looked around the room with hostility. The librarian himself thought about finding his own corner to avoid social interactions, but he barely made it several meters before a swarm of people began to surround him.

"My lord! May we please take a picture with you!" one noblewoman asked. To Seiras' utter horror, she had five children with her ranging from ages 10 to 16. Two were boys and three were girls. All of them had star-struck eyes as they stared at the Astartes.

"Why?" the librarian asked bluntly.

"Please, Angel?!" the youngest looking boy asked. He had a puppy face on as he gazed hopefully at the aloof librarian.

"Fine…" Seiras finally accepted.

The woman and her children all happily gathered around him as a pristine servo skull camera flew over and took several pictures of them.

' _Why do I have a soft spot for children?'_ Seiras wondered as he actually allowed the young humans to touch his armour. One even grabbed Seiras' finger with her hand trying to get his attention.

He looked down at her curiously, "What is it, child?"

"What's your name, angel?" she asked. She looked like the youngest girl, but Seiras couldn't guess her age.

"Seiras," he replied distantly. The Blood Raven was already getting tired of introducing himself to people.

"You're really pretty," the girl giggled causing the librarian to look at her dumbfounded.

"So I've been told," Seiras replied with disinterest.

"Come, leave the angel alone now. Thanks again my lord. This means a lot to my children," the noblewoman said appreciatively as she practically dragged her children away.

Seiras immediately began to move with haste away from the crowds before another person could talk to him.

"Seiras, over here!" he heard someone call his name. He quickly recognized the voice and glanced towards its source.

There he saw none other than Selana and a host of Sororitas with her. All of them were in power armour, but they did not have weapons in hand. The nobility appeared to be steering away from them, likely out of fear.

' _I suppose it couldn't hurt to speak with her. At least it will negate these people away from me,'_ Seiras thought as he approached the Sororitas.

"It's great to see you again, Seiras. How are you feeling? Did the Inquisitor do anything weird to you while you were on quarters?" Selana asked.

"I'm fine, and yes she did. I would prefer not to speak of it," Seiras stated calmly.

He recognized a lot of the nearby sororitas. Many of them were Selana and Jessenta's personal entourage from one his previous encounters.

"I'm surprised the Inquisitor cleared you for duty. I thought she hated your guts," one of the other sisters added.

"Well, a lot of people spoke up in my defense, and I think it convinced her to show some mercy. I appreciate your support, Selana," Seiras said respectfully.

She looked away for a moment before responding, "Don't get the wrong idea about it, Seiras. I owe you big time for saving my life…and I feel like it was a bit overzealous of me to openly condemn you. I know you're not a corrupted heretic because you risked your life for mine. We've all agreed that you're not a heretic...yet."

"You had every reason to doubt me, so I don't take it personally," he replied.

"You should…I was actually convinced that you were corrupting everyone with some weird psychic powers. I suppose I owe you an apology for that. I'm sorry for being a bitch to you. I'm sure you get enough bitchiness from that insufferable Inquisitor," Selana responded a bit emotionally.

The librarian looked away, "I suppose so. It's been a strange past few weeks. I count myself among the luckiest in the galaxy for surviving these recent happenings."

"Yeah, and you keep getting luckier by the looks of things. We're on good terms with you, Seiras, but don't think that means we're not watching your every move…I hope you understand," Selana followed up.

"It's nothing I'm not used to already," Seiras shrugged half-heartedly. A brief silence followed his remark as Selana thought of something to say.

"So yeah, how's this party treating you?" Selana finally managed to restart the conversation with a new topic.

"I hate it here. These people are weak…none of them have ever known struggle or sacrifice. This is a waste of time," Seiras answered.

Selana nodded, "Yeah, they're all a bunch of pompous, lying cowards. I can tell they're all hiding something from us, and I haven't even spoken to any of them yet. They seem to like you though."

"I have that effect on people. They just swarm to me like I'm some beacon of light. It must be my psychic glamour," Seiras said blankly and somewhat absent mindedly as he stared off into the room.

A moment later, several the sororitas began to laugh. He looked back at them confused but didn't say anything. _'Wait...I didn't meant to say that out loud.'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"That's pretty funny, and definitely accurate," one of the other sisters added.

"Oh, haha, you're making fun of me still?" Selana shook her head with a brief chuckle, "I didn't know you had a sense of humor."

"So, Seiras, I want to ask you about what we talked about before…about the blank," Selana changed the subject after a brief silence. Her voice was serious again.

The other sisters all stared curiously at the Astartes. _'She must have told the other sisters about that. I should be mindful of what I say to her from now on.'_

"What about it?" the librarian asked as he looked around to make sure nobody was eavesdropping.

"Do you still need one?" she asked.

Seiras shrugged, "I don't know…I suppose I'm fine now."

"I know you probably still think we want to kill you, but believe me when I say that we're more interested in helping you. As Jessenta clearly explained to all of us, your situation was her fault and not yours. If there's anything else wrong with you, then feel free to tell us without consequence. You can trust us," Selana followed up.

"How is Jessenta?" Seiras seized the opportunity to change the subject.

Several of the sororitas traded amused expressions from his question, and Selana's expression visibly darkened a bit.

"She's doing much better now. She woke up the other day. We feared she would be unfit for battle after the injuries she suffered, but one of those Imperial Fist apothecaries helped the surgeons to heal her. She was walking around last I saw her," Selana explained.

' _Jessenta healed before Kallius? That's odd…though I suppose his injuries were much worse. Still, she was almost cut in half,'_ Seiras pondered briefly.

"Yeah, you should have seen her face when we told her you rescued Selana," one of the sisters said amused.

"Sister! Don't go telling him about that!" Selana immediately silenced her.

"About what?" Seiras wondered.

Selana sighed heavily, "Nothing, Seiras. They're all still teasing me over this whole debacle. About you rescuing me that is."

"Teasing you?" he said uncertainly, "why would they be doing that?"

Several of the sororitas began to giggle as Selana got frustrated, "They all just think I have some kind of crush on you…which obviously I don't. Besides, if you're anyone's then you're Jessenta's. I want no part in that immorality."

"What are you talking about?" Seiras shook his head somewhat confused, "what does having a crush mean?"

"It's nothing, Seiras! ANYWAY…" Selana trailed off embarrassed. She was thankful that Seiras seemed a bit clueless to what was being implied.

"So, what do you think of that governor?" Selana asked the librarian more seriously now.

The Blood Raven looked over towards the direction where Velina was before turning back, "If I could do it over again, I'd _accidentally_ kill her in the crossfire of her rescue."

"Hahaha," Selana chuckled, "yeah, I saw her on the planetary news here. She seems unbearably annoying. I guess it's no surprise that she and Atia get along."

"I am having a difficult time telling if Atia is doing this for a reason. There is no point to this ball. I think we should interrogate every one of the nobles about what's happening," Seiras shook his head in annoyance.

Selana sighed, "Yeah, she seems to be enjoying herself a bit too much. Personally, I think most of these people are heretics and they need to die. I mean who the hell lets hive gangs and rebel PDF forces take their planetary governor hostage? These people are either very incompetent, or that governor did something horrible to cause it."

Over the next few minutes, Seiras and the Sororitas talked about the unusual condition of the planet's rebellion and the possibilities that caused it.

"So, you think it's Eldar?" Selana said shocked.

Seiras shrugged, "I can't be certain…but they are the only xenos that I know of to do things like this to human worlds. They're also very stealthy and can easily avoid detection."

Before Selana could reply, a voice sounded from behind them, "Oh, Seiras!"

The librarian turned around and saw Atia who was approaching him with a wide smile.

He immediately felt his defenses come up as she got closer, _'This can't be good.'_

"Great…here she comes," Selana groaned in annoyance.

"I've been looking all over for you. I thought you left the party for a moment. You would think it'd be easy to spot a space marine in here," Atia laughed. She seemed halfway inebriated by the look of it.

Seiras found it odd that she would willingly drink despite the situation. He quickly rationalized it as her way of putting the nobles at ease.

"Is she…drinking?" Selana said disbelievingly as Atia stumbled forward and caught herself against the librarian.

"I'm kind of tipsy, Seiras, so I need you to carry me around and keep me safe," Atia laughed.

Selana looked at her shocked, "Is she for real?! Inquisitor, what are you doing getting drunk?!"

"I'm not drunk, I just had a few drinks and feel like relaxing for once. These nobles are kissing our asses, so we might as well take advantage of them and celebrate, yeah?" Atia replied.

"I suppose, but aren't we supposed to be investigating this rebellion? Are you any closer to finding out what these people know?" Selana asked.

The inquisitor shook her head at Selana, "You just don't get it, Sister…you're not going to get all the answers by bludgeoning your way through bureaucracy and politics. You need a bit of subtlety…you and your bolter gals over here are sticking out like sore thumbs. Everyone is too afraid to come over here because of it. Take a lesson from the Astartes, they're actually getting along well with the nobles. I was hoping you could all do the same."

Seiras and Selana both glanced over to see Viggo happily eating to his heart's content as he told stories to a large group of children and some of their parents. Nemias and Decimus were both still together, but they were now surrounded by PDF officers and generals. Gregorius was still brooding in his corner, but actually appeared to be talking with a few nobles.

' _Gregorius is talking to them?!'_ Seiras thought with astonishment.

"C'mon Seiras, I need someone to dance with for this next song," Atia tried to pull Seiras away. He did not budge.

' _Dance?! Emperor, no…I refuse to do something so trivial and embarrassing!'_ he thought seriously.

"I'm not doing that, Inquisitor," Seiras finally responded.

"Aw, why not? I was really hoping you'd dance with me," Atia tried to convince him with a playful voice.

Selana looked around at several of the other Sororitas who all had serious expressions on their faces. She immediately spoke up in disapproval, "It doesn't look like he's interested in wasting his time with that, _Inquisitor_. We were discussing the political situation on the planet before you interrupted us."

"Oh? Is that right, _sister_?" Atia turned towards Selana with threatening eyes.

"Yeah, that's right, _inquisitor_!" Selana immediately countered.

"Hmph…I see. I didn't realize I was interrupting over here. No need to be so bitter about it. You seriously need to lighten up and have some fun," Atia replied smugly.

The Sororita leader crossed her arms, "Well, if that will be all Inquisitor, then you should go back to your party and keep having fun. I'm sure there's plenty of people in here waiting to kiss your ass. We're actually working over here."

"I get the feeling you don't like me, Palatine…" Atia said slowly.

"That's funny…I sort of get the same impression from you. You're welcome by the way for saving your ship from sabotage. You never did thank us for that," Selana laughed darkly.

Seiras watched their little debate with confusion, _'What the hell is going on here?'_

Atia shrugged, "Well, as far as I'm aware, Seiras was actually the one who did all the work. I am very grateful for it too. I can definitely see why all of his former Inquisitors liked him now. He's an invaluable asset to my task force."

"You sure didn't think that a few weeks ago. Also, If he's such a great asset, then why don't you let him do his job instead of wasting his time with games and politics? Isn't that supposed to be your job?" Selana asked as she shook her head.

The Inquisitor ran her hand over Seiras' armoured arm as she spoke, "You poor, unaware girl…I don't think you understand the situation. Do I have to spell it out for you?"

"Oh, I know exactly what you're saying, and you can go to hell if you think I'm going to allow it. That's immoral and heretical. Don't think just because you're an Inquisitor that you're above our vigilance," Selana retorted.

Atia looked at her slyly, "Really now? I wonder if that's as heretical as your Canoness then hmm?"

Selana looked like she was about to pounce on Atia after hearing that remark. The tension got much higher in the following silence.

"When did you hear about that?" Selana asked slowly.

"Seiras told me when I interrogated him the other day…among other juicy things," Atia stated coolly.

The sororitas all looked a bit horrified that Atia knew. The Inquisitor gave them an amused look, "You don't have the power to leverage over me in this situation, so I suggest you mind your own business."

"Really?! And what's anyone going to think about their orders coming from a radical Inquisitor who got corrupted by Chaos during a battle against chaos space marines? You do realize that the Sororitas represent the Ordo Hereticus on this mission, right? As far as I'm aware, you could be corrupted." Selana countered.

Atia crossed her arms, "Is that a threat, sister? For your sake I hope not. If so, then your prioress and I will be having a few words when this is all over."

"I never threatened you…trust me you would know it if I did. The fact that you feel so threatened makes me believe you're guilty," Selana followed up.

Seiras finally decided to intervene, "Enough of this! I don't know what you're both rambling on about, but we have more important things to worry about. This is not the time or place to argue over petty disagreements."

"You're right of course, Seiras. I will return to my _questioning_. Keep the bolter bitches company if you want, but you still owe me a dance," Atia sighed before walking away.

"I hate that woman," Selana said bitterly before turning her gaze back to Seiras.

"She's definitely childish for an Inquisitor. The only reason she invited my Kill Team here was for her own amusement and to show off for these nobles. We would serve a much better role actually doing something," Seiras sighed.

Selana nodded, "I agree…she insisted on bringing us here too. Yet then she just started flaunting herself in front of us like that. Why was she asking you to dance with her?!"

"Atia seems to find enjoyment in embarrassing and shaming me," Seiras explained with a sigh.

The Sororita clenched a fist unhappily, "I can't believe you told her about what happened between you and Jessenta."

"I didn't have a choice…she already knew too much," Seiras explained distantly.

Selana rolled her eyes, "Yeah well that's a big problem for us now, because we don't have any leverage over Atia. We can't accuse her of heresy when she has knowledge like that to use against us. That bitch a is a manipulative snake."

"This campaign is only temporary. I am completely over Atia and the Ordo Malleus as well, but we all have our duties to uphold. Just ignore Atia's nonsense, and we can all go our separate ways when this is over," Seiras stated calmly.

"I get the feeling she's not going to let you go…" Selana trailed off slowly.

Seiras' eyes widened with disapproval, "You really think so?"

"Seiras…she was practically acting like you belonged to her a minute ago. You really think she's going to let you return to the Ordo Xenos? She'll just make up some nonsense about how you're still corrupted and that you should remain under the Ordo Malleus' jurisdiction permanently," Selana explained.

 _'What?! Emperor NO!'_ Seiras thought furiously.

The librarian shook his head, "I sincerely hope that does not happen."

"Well if it does, then I'm going to say something to Captain Arius. Grey Knights have the authority to kill their inquisitors if he or she is corrupted...and I'm willing to bet she is," the dark-haired sister stated factually.

"Speaking of Arius, where are her Grey Knights at? I saw them here yesterday. Why are they exempt from this pointless ball?" Seiras asked.

"I couldn't tell you, Seiras. Though if I had to guess I would say it's probably because Grey Knights aren't really supposed to be common knowledge. All of you guys were on the global news, but only the governor and a few of her people even saw Captain Arius or that other Grey Knight," Selana shrugged.

"That is a valid point. I hadn't even considered that yet. Still I can't help but wonder what they're doing," Seiras replied.

"Seiras, I have a serious question…does Atia often approach you like that?" Selana asked seriously.

The librarian was unsure of how to answer her question. After a brief silence, he finally responded, "I'm not entirely sure what you mean. She has been getting a bit friendlier with me lately if that's what you're asking."

" _Friendlier…"_ one of the other sisters said in a doubtful way with air quotes.

Selana narrowed her gaze unhappily, "Has she…made any kind of advances on you?"

"No, but she did touch my hair recently during my interrogation and she has been asking me a lot of personal questions about my past," Seiras replied.

The sororita grimaced in disapproval, "Well there's nothing we can really do about it since Atia has the upper hand here. I'll talk with Jessenta and see what she thinks. She might have a better idea of how to deal with Atia than I do."

"Lord Space Marine, a moment if you would…" a voice came from behind.

Seiras turned around and saw a nobleman. He did not look very prominent in comparison to some of the others, but the librarian acknowledged him anyway, "What is it?"

"May I speak with you in private. Follow me to the corner fountain behind the pillar as discreetly as you can," he said nervously.

 _'He wants to tell us something but is too afraid to say it around anyone in here. Why did you choose me though?'_ Seiras wondered as he humored the man.

He followed the man to the fountain which was conveniently out of sight from the governor and most of her high court. A large pillar now obscured the view from the other nobles as Seiras and the man stood by the fountain.

The librarian eyed him curiously as he waited for him to speak.

"Fine evening good sir. May I just say that it is truly the Emperor's blessing that your fleet arrived when you did. Things have been going terribly for months now," the nobleman explained cautiously as he made sure to stay out of line of sight from other nobles.

"Why are you acting so cautious? Are you afraid to be seen by your peers? Why did you want to talk to me in private?" Seiras asked several questions.

The man fearfully glanced around, "The governor and her ilk threatened to murder anyone who spoke up about what they were doing…but I have to say something while they're all distracted. Everyone's eyes are on the Inquisitor and the other Astartes, but you seemed out of the way enough that nobody involved was paying attention to you."

"Involved in what?" Seiras asked seriously.

"Slave trading, my lord…it's been going on for years. Our planet started getting attacked by aliens about a decade ago. They moved so fast in and out of the hives that the PDF could not stop them. They pillage the planet on a whim taking anyone they can and slaughtering countless others. Eventually, the governor and the aristocracy made a deal with these aliens to supply them with slaves in order to stop the attacks. Governor Velina sells the peasantry and the lower hive citizens to these aliens in exchange for a non-aggression pact. She has also been exposing other planets' defenses and secrets to these aliens in order to spare her position," the man explained quietly.

"A decade? What do these aliens look like? Why have you never reported this to the Astra Millitarum or the Imperial Navy?" Seiras asked seriously.

"They are Eldar, my lord. At least that is what I've heard. Everyone who isn't involved that sees them ends up dead or captured. They don't even leave bodies behind, and the governor helped to cover them up. She's the one who ordered our communications knocked out before she got captured," he replied.

"I see…so your planet has been suffering raids from Dark Eldar?" Seiras clarified.

The man looked confused, "Dark Eldar? What are they? Is there a difference between Dark and Regular Eldar?"

"I don't have the time to explain, but Dark Eldar deal in capturing slaves. When did they last attack?" Seiras asked urgently.

"They're…" the man swallowed a lump in his throat, "supposed to be meeting the governor in here tonight. Since the Inquisitor is here, I fear they'll break their non-aggression pact and assume we've broken the governor's deal with them," he followed up.

"So, the governor invited us here to be killed? Or did she invite us here for her own protection?" Seiras wondered aloud.

"I…don't know my lord. I believe she intends to side with the better option when it presents itself," he replied.

Seiras nodded understandingly, "Thank you for telling me this. I suggest you take your family and leave immediately. Bunker down, and if the Dark Eldar are going to capture you, then kill your family before they can."

"M-my lord? W-what's going to happen?" he asked shaking in fear.

"Go…and do not let them take you alive. It's a fate worse than death," Seiras replied as he walked from around the pillar. Through his peripheral vision, he could see the man hustling to gather a few others and making his way for the exit. A number of other nobles followed him, who were all likely innocents.

Selana and the sororitas all advanced towards Seiras when they saw him practically stomping on his way back over. He drew the Nemesis Force Halberd a moment later as he walked past them and towards the governor.

"Seiras, what did he tell you?" Selana asked urgently as she ran up next to him.

"Dark Eldar," was all Seiras said in response.

The various Sororitas all gasped and soured their faces with hatred and disgust. Everyone's eyes turned towards the librarian fearfully when they saw he was armed and approaching the governor.

Many PDF guards try to intercept him cautiously. One general spoke up, "My lord, why are you armed? I cannot allow you to approach the nobility with that weapon out."

Seiras didn't even acknowledge the man as he pushed him as hard as possible causing him to go flying into a crowd of PDF men and towards the ground violently.

"Seiras?! What are you doing?" Atia intercepted him finally as she had a concerned expression on her face.

The other Kill Team members all wasted no time reaching the scene as they looked at the librarian shocked. Many of the nobles were cowering in fear away from the scene, and the governor along with her inner circle took cover behind Atia.

"You have been selling your people to xenos?!" Seiras demanded, "no wonder a rebellion broke out on this planet!"

Velina looked petrified that Seiras knew and collapsed in terror, "P-please have mercy! We didn't have a choice! I-I had to ensure the safety of the planet, and we could not get Imperial reinforcements to help us against their raids!"

"They've been doing what?!" Gregorius hissed hatefully as he immediately drew his sword and put his helmet back on.

"Was this meant to lure us all into one place?" Seiras asked angrily.

"It's not like that! I had to choose between the lower scum of our planet or the regular citizens! I never wanted to make the deal, but I had to! I held out hoping that an Imperial fleet would come by to save us, and here you are! I have no intention of betraying you all!" Velina exclaimed.

"And yet you didn't even warn us that they were coming here tonight?!" Seiras demanded.

Atia glanced at Seiras confused, "What did you find out, exactly?"

"She's been selling people from the lower hives to Dark Eldar raiders in exchange for a non-aggression pact. Apparently, she has also given away Imperial secrets to them regarding nearby worlds as well," Seiras explained.

Nemias' one red eye widened into a hate filled death glare, "You sold your people to Dark Eldar?!"

"I expected deception, but this is most troubling. I'm not an expert on dealing with xenos," Atia shook her head.

"Please, Inquistor Atia, here's the forge authority codes right here. Reequip your fleet and help us kill these evil xenos! The palace is extremely fortified! You can fight them back right?" Velina pleaded.

Atia looked at her somewhat amused as she took the codes from her, "Way to hand over your only bargaining chip, Velina. I have no more need of you. Seiras…if you would, please kill her."

Doing as commanded, the librarian pointed his arm mounted storm bolter at the governor and blew her in half with a single shot. A moment later Seiras fired into Velina's entourage of accomplices killing all of them.

"Was anyone else involved in this scandal that I should know about?!" Atia asked the rest of the room.

A moment later, a huge rumbling shook the entire room as the lights went out. A vox broadcast sounded over the entire grand hall. It sounded like a horrifying scream followed up by maniacal laughing. Then much to everyone's disdain, loud aggressive music started broadcasting.

"They're already here?!" Atia said angrily.

"They were likely waiting to attack us at this ball. The governor set us up to give as a gift to the Dark Eldar," Nemias said hatefully.

Atia grimaced her teeth as she pulled out a personal vox communicator, "This is Inquisitor Atia, all military personnel deploy to Asha Spire! We're under attack! I want orbital overwatch from the fleet! Admiral Hightower take out any ships entering and leaving orbit! Have all Astartes in orbit on standby in drop pods!"

"We're all going to die!" a fearful noblewoman shouted.

"What should we do?! There's nowhere to go!" another followed up.

Atia growled, "Every one of you bunker down in the throne room with non-combatants! My Scions and the Imperial Fists Astartes will guard the palace. Kill Team Calamity, you're the experts on Dark Eldar. I want you to find the leader of this attack and take him out by any means necessary!"

"As you say, Inquisitor. Come brothers, let's hurry!" Seiras announced.

"We'll go with you!" Selana volunteered.

"Stay and guard the palace, Sororitas! You're not equipped to keep up with them," Atia immediately shot down the suggestion.

Selana begrudgingly nodded, "Come sisters, let's set up a perimeter!"

 **Asha Hive, Palace Spire Courtyard, Kill Team Calamity**

Seiras and company all hurried out of the ballroom and back outside where quickly stopped to formulate a plan. They were all fully helmeted and armed again.

"How do you all want to handle this?! Because I personally want to butcher as many of the knife-eared fiends as possible!" Viggo asked aggressively.

"Show them no mercy. Dark Eldar are the cruelest and most evil beings in the galaxy. We need to find the Archon leading this attack and put him down!" Nemias said with righteous fury.

Before anyone could say another word, Decimus began to open fire as a murder of crows flew overhead. A closer look revealed them to be scourges. The winged Dark Eldar flew above the palace and began to land in various places opening fire on the Imperial Guard, PDF, and Astartes defenders.

Decimus' assault cannon easily blasted countless of the winged Drukhari from the sky, but they all quickly dispersed into a wider flock. It was currently dark outside, and even darker due to the lack of lights and the obscured moonlight.

The local PDF men cried out in terror as countless scourges swooped in to pick them up and toss them off the spire or impale them on buildings. The winged dark eldar were no match against the disciplined Scions who remained in a fortified location and unleashed countless volleys with their hotshot lasguns. Nevertheless, the winged xenos kept descending from the sky.

Various Imperial Fists and White Templars were also spread out among fortifications and entrances further reinforcing the palace defenses. Evaldus and Krias were both at the entrance to the palace likely leading its defense. Anti-aircraft guns and heavy bolter fire began to blast wildly into the sky causing countless flashes of light.

With each flash, Seiras could see more and more scourges dying and arriving. The scourges weren't the only problem unfortunately, as shadowy figures began to appear out of nowhere climbing up walls and impaling countless guardsmen with wicked looking blades.

 _'It's just like my vision...'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"Mandrakes approaching to the front!" Nemias announced as he opened fire with his flamer setting a huge swathe of them aflame. The shadowy monsters all hissed in agony as Viggo furiously ripped them apart with his lightning claws a moment later.

Kill Team Calamity was standing out from the fortifications and were surrounded on all sides by mandrakes now. They all formed into a tight formation with Decimus and Nemias up front and Viggo watching the rear. The Minotaur's Assault cannon blew apart nearly one hundred mandrakes during their advance, while the others all fired into the flanks and rear.

"What's the plan here, Seiras? Where are we going?" Viggo asked.

"We need to draw out their leaders. Dark Eldar don't like to attack fortified locations. If we hold out too long, they'll just destroy half the hive around us and flee. Our best option is to draw them into attacking us," Seiras replied.

"If the Archon is here, he is probably circling around outside in a Ravager. This is the standard method of attack for Dark Eldar. They send in scourges and Mandrakes to soften a fortification and then charge in with kabalites, hellions, and wyches. I doubt they'll try to attack the palace if it's this fortified, so Seiras' plan is the most logical option for ending this quickly. Although, I don't like our odds trying to fight an entire Kabal without back up," Nemias added.

Viggo shook his head, "We can take them! Just wait until I see that bloody Archon!"

"I have an idea. When we draw them in I'll drop an orbital relay signal so any Astartes left in orbit can come down in drop pods to help us. Trust me, Viggo...we're going to need help," Nemias elaborated.

"Kabalites are advancing on our position. I see a vanguard behind cover up ahead," Decimus interrupted as he fired into the front line kabalite warriors that were advancing.

"Uh, lads, we have a bigger problem back here!" Viggo shouted.

Everyone minus Decimus turned back to see a Raider flying directly towards their formation with the intent of running them over. The hovering gun platform opened up fire with its dark lances causing them all to spread and move out of its line of fire. The raider craft unleashed a terrible shrieking sound as he sped by them, nearly running them over.

 _'That sound...'_ Seiras thought angrily.

"Decimus get rid of that bloody thing!" Viggo shouted as he cut down a number of mandrakes that tried to take advantage of their broken formation.

Many were attempting to swarm Decimus now as the Terminator looked over towards the raider.

"Keep them off of me, for a moment brothers!" Decimus roared as he unloaded a barrage from his cyclone missile launcher into the circling Raider. Several of the missiles missed and blew apart a host of Kabalites, but most of them hit the aircraft causing it to speed out of control and explode into a nearby building.

Decimus wasted no time covering the front again as the Astartes all fell back into formation. He held up his storm shield as many splinter weapons opened fire into them. He started up his assault cannon again and blew apart another formation of Kabalites.

"Viggo get up front and give him supporting fire with those storm bolters, I'll cover the rear!" Seiras commanded.

"Aye!" the space wolf shouted as he moved up front and fired both storm bolters into the Dark Eldar.

His added firepower greatly assisted in pushing the Dark Eldar warriors back as the Kill Team advanced further into the dark streets of the Upper Spire.

Seiras could hear countless screams and sounds of gunfire all around him. As he watched the rear, blasting apart mandrakes and scourges, he could see them grabbing various civilians and taking them away…alive. People were screaming and begging for help as the monstrous xenos unleashed terror upon them. He felt a bit of remorse when he saw a teenage girl running towards the Astartes and crying out for them to save her. She made it halfway before a scourge swooped in in picked her up.

"We need to help these people!" Nemias shouted angrily as he glanced back and saw what was happening.

"We can't Nemias…there's too many of them. Maybe if we had a full company, but there's only five of us right now. The only thing we can do is take out the Archon and end the raid," Seiras replied as he unleashed a psychic torrent of lightning into a huge formation of scourges that landed behind them.

"Damn it! Curse these xenos to the warp!" Nemias said with frustration as he saw a child crying in the middle of the street. The poor boy was dragged away screaming by a mandrake a moment later.

Salamanders were renowned for hating Dark Eldar above all other chapters as the vile xenos were known to raid their home planet of Nocturne. Seiras knew that Nemias in particular had a special loathing for them. Considering that the librarian felt bad about not being able to help the civilians, he could only imagine what the compassionate Salamander was feeling.

"Hold! Something's wrong!" Decimus announced to the group causing the five Astartes to all stop.

"What is it?" Gregorius asked seriously.

The Minotaur briefly turned back, "The Kabalites stopped advancing. They're avoiding us now."

"So what? They're probably scared shitless that we're slaughtering them!" Viggo announced aggressively.

"Brothers, I'm detecting multiple energy signatures approaching! Take cover!" Decimus shouted.

The Kill Team all moved closer towards a building and were less out in the open as three raiders and a ravager flew into the opening. The Ravager unleashed a heavy barrage into their direction as the four raiders circled around covering escape routes.

"We're surrounded!" Nemias spoke urgently as more prestigious looking Kabalites jumped off of the raiders and charged in. The new arriving enemies had much better weapons and armour by the looks of it.

"What the hell are these guys? More kabalites?" Viggo asked.

"They look like trueborn. Be careful not to get shot by those shredders!" Nemias warned.

The space wolf growled as he fired a volley of bolter fire into the first wave of them, "We're getting closer at least if they're sending the elites to fight us."

"Decimus, do you think you can take out that Ravager?" Nemias asked the terminator.

"I'm almost out of missiles. You still have a melta gun and melta bombs. You'll have to do it, but we can't head into the open with all these Kabalites and raiders flanking us."

"Split up then. Decimus and Nemias take out the Ravager. Viggo and Gregorius cover the two right-side raiders! I can get this one on the left street!" Serias commanded.

"Are you sure splitting up is a good idea?" Nemias asked, "I can call in drop pods here if we need it. I know we're going to need more ammo soon."

"Don't waste it until we find their leader. If we deploy too many Astartes before we find him, then he'll flee," Seiras replied.

"Since you're covering a side alone, just hold them back, Seiras, and we will come back you up as soon as we deal with this ravager!" Decimus explained.

The librarian nodded and a moment later, the five Astartes split apart. Viggo ruthlessly charged into the right-side street firing his storm bolters into the advancing trueborn Kabalites. Gregorius fired up his jump pack and landed on the first raider as Viggo advanced towards the other. The Black Templar hatefully murdered everything in range of him as Viggo advanced.

Decimus had his storm shield up as he moved out to draw the Ravager's fire. He made sure not to take direct blows from its dark lances as he maintained cover behind a nearby building. Several mandrakes tried to jump on him while he did this, but he effortlessly crushed them before firing his remaining cyclone missiles into the Ravager.

This caused some damage to the craft, but it didn't destroy it. Luckily, it gave Nemias the opportune cover to move in. The Salamander managed to sneak behind it and threw two melta bombs onto the deck of the Ravager. He then shot the engines with his melta gun causing the craft to spin in a wild arc before exploding violently. Several of the trueborn aboard managed to escape before the explosion, but their survival was short lived as Nemias roasted them alive with his Melta gun.

Meanwhile, Seiras kept his side's enemies from advancing as he used suppressing fire to blast apart the trueborn kabalites. He could hear them all yelling at each other in their native alien tongue.

" **You useless fools! Advance all at once! It's only one Monkeigh!"** one of the trueborn shouted furiously in his own language.

Obeying his command, the trueborn all charged in at various angles at once. Seiras waited for the opportune moment for them to bunch closer together before channeling forth a large psychic storm of lightning into them.

Defenseless against psychic powers, the dozen charging trueborn all died instantly to the lightning. After smiting the xenos, Seiras charged closer and jumped onto the raider's deck. The Dark Eldar aboard all moved to instantly try attacking him, but they were helplessly ineffective against the Astartes in melee combat as he cleaved apart the survivors.

A moment later, Seiras took cover as another Ravager appeared nearby. It unloaded massive firepower, but Seiras thankfully managed to avoid the blasts and take cover as the Ravager fired onto the Raider. After a few moments of pointless shooting, the ravager tried to maneuver around and blast him from cover. As it came around the side, Seiras charged and jumped onto the deck of the Ravager.

The crew aggressively tried to shoot him, but he wasted no time throwing the gunners off the sides and immediately shooting the pilot with his storm bolter. The obvious leader on the Ravager drew some type of Eldar power sword and immediately parried as Seiras swung his Nemesis Force halberd towards him.

Although he stopped the halberd from cutting him in half, the dark eldar was much weaker and lighter than Seiras causing the attack to send him flying off the Ravager.

He gracefully leapt to his feet and shouted into his own broadcast channel, **"This is Dracon Daeyal! I need back up! A space marine took out my vanguard!"**

 **"What do you mean how?! He's a psyker! Send me some damn back up now!"** the Dracon yelled into his communication device.

Seiras immediately went to work on trying to murder the Dracon as he furiously cleaved his halberd in ferocious arcs towards the alien.

The Dracon dexterously dodged and parried most of the attacks, but he was unable to counter the librarian as Seiras unleashed a psychic shockwave with his last swing.

Seeing he was outmatched, the Dracon immediately tried to flee, but didn't make it far as Seiras fired his storm bolter at him. Several shots hit the Dracon including one in his leg. The limb was blown off from the bolter round allowing Seiras to easily finish him off with a swift shot to the head.

"Seiras, get back here! We have more a dozen more raiders in bound! I think the archon is coming after us" Nemias shouted into their personal vox.

"I'm on the way, brothers! Call in the drop pods now, Nemias!" Seiras commanded as he made his way back to the others.

He didn't quite make it as one of the surviving kabalites he threw off the ravager from earlier was now back on the deck. The surviving Kabalite began to fire one of its turrets into him. He held up a psychic ward to negate the brunt of the attack as he charged back onto the ravager to kill the survivor. Seiras quickly impaled him with his halberd before a loud shrieking sounded nearby.

"I see Hellions moving in on your location, Seiras! Take cover, we'll come to you!" Nemias spoke into the vox.

"We're pinned, Two more ravagers are on the right side!" Decimus shouted.

"I'll jump in and take them out! Wait here!" Gregorius announced as he used his jump pack to land on one of the ravagers and murder its crew.

While the two ravagers were holding down his team, Seiras was unable to return as a host of raiders now circled the ravager he was on.

"Hold on, brothers! Drop pods are inbound in two minutes!" Nemias announced as he, Viggo, and Decimus worked to take out the other ravager.

Seiras kept his head down as he dodged shots from the three raiders now circling him. _'I should try to pilot this thing out of here. It has heavier armour than the raiders do,'_ the librarian thought as he moved to the back of the craft and took control of the pilot's seat.

He had no idea what he was doing with it, but it had a similar control panel layout to craftworlder vypers, so he knew how to at least steer and accelerate. Without wasting another second, he drove the Ravager away from the Raiders and back towards his kill team.

He ungracefully scraped against buildings and debris as he attempted to dodge gunfire from the raiders chasing him. Two raiders quickly flanked him on either side as he attempted to reach his kill team. To his utter fury, the two flanking raiders both sandwiched him and turned together forcing his steering away from the other Astartes and into another street opening further away. They then accelerated with great speed forcing Seiras a considerable distance away from the others.

 _'Curse these xenos!'_ Seiras thought furiously. He thought about jumping off the ravager, but knew his chances were low against three raiders on foot by himself. Thinking fast, he got off the pilot's seat and moved towards one of the nearby dark lance guns. He unloaded fire into the crew on the right raider. He specifically made sure to shoot the pilot as well causing it to spiral right and crash into a building.

Without hesitation, he jumped on the other raider as his Ravager finally failed from the massive firepower it was enduring. The Ravager soon crashed and exploded into another building a moment later.

As he boarded the raider, Seiras fearlessly cut apart the Kabalites aboard it. He endured a number of shots from the enemies but suffered no fatal damage as he successfully killed the crew. He jumped off and rolled from the raider as is sped out of control and crashed as well.

Now out in the open, he faced down the last raider which seemed to be keeping its distance. Seiras looked at it confused, _'Why is it holding back?'_

"Seiras! Drop pods are here, send us your location and we'll come get you!" Nemias announced in the vox.

Sure enough, multiple drop pods began to rain down around the upper spire. Seiras spoke into the vox a moment later, "Have you see any sign of the Archon yet?"

"No…but I saw a lot of Raiders and hellions heading your direction a minute ago!" the Salamander answered.

Not even a second after hearing that, Seiras spotted Hellions flying in on their spiked hoverboards. He took cover and fought them off for a minute, but thankfully several drop pods landed in the clearing shortly afterward.

To his utter relief, several Imperial Fists stepped out of it and unloaded the Emperor's fury on the xenos. Seiras was about to leave cover and make his way towards the Imperial Fists after they finished killing the hellions, but he then felt his two hearts stop for a moment. He could only gawk in disbelief as three Ravagers and two Raiders drove down the street and blasted them apart. The librarian immediately took cover again and grimaced hatefully, _'I need to get back to the others!'_

"Seiras, we got a visual on the Archon about a minute ago! He's in a heavily armoured ravager with two flanking ravagers with him!" Gregorius announced through the vox.

"Yeah some Raiders are following them as well. Three Ravagers and two Raiders just drove by me and killed the Imperial Fists that landed over here! How soon can you all get here!?" Seiras asked.

"We're pinned, Seiras! We have wyches, scourges, and kabalites everywhere over here. We're bunkered down with the majority of the other arriving Astartes," Decimus answered.

"A Talos pain engine is incoming!" Nemias shouted, "Focus all fire on that abomination!"

"Don't do anything reckless, Seiras! We can hold out for now. Take the back alleys to get back here. Stay off the main streets!" Decimus stated urgently.

 _'It looks like I'm on my own again…'_ Seiras thought.

"Seiras, where are you? We deployed a predator! I'll come retrieve you, brother!" the voice of none other than Kallius came over the vox.

"Kallius?! About damn time your ass showed up!" Viggo half-laughed.

"It's great to hear your voice, Kallius! My location tracker is turned on. I'll remain here as long as I can…but make haste brother! It won't take them long to detect me here." Seiras replied.

He briefly peeked out of his cover as was shocked to see the three Ravagers and two Raiders coming back down the street. They all stopped before advancing further, and Seiras got a good look at the passengers.

The front ravager had five incubi on it as well as a pilot and the Archon himself by the looks of it. The Archon's ravager also had a human woman chained up on it. Both of the other Ravagers and two Raiders had wyches and trueborn kabalites on them.

"Why are we stopping?!" one of the wyches shouted over from a flanking ravager to the Archon.

" **There's no sign of the space marine that killed Daeyal…he wasn't with the others. The last raider from the vanguard reported he crashed somewhere around here."** the archon answered as he scanned the area.

Seiras immediately took cover again even though he knew it was futile to try and hide. Part of him felt shame in trying to hide from these xenos as he thought about how ridiculous it was for a space marine to do.

' _What am I doing hiding over here?! Only in death does duty end…what more can I ask for than a good death?'_ Seiras thought to himself as he left cover and charged towards the Ravagers and Raiders. He took this time to speak into his vox, "Brothers I am engaging the archon's retinue. Close in on my position, there's not that many of them over here!"

"I'm on the way! We'll be there in a few minutes! Just hold out and survive until then, Seiras!" Kallius spoke into the vox.

All of the dark eldar present on the ravagers perked up in disbelief when they saw the lone space marine charging them.

" **Is he insane?"** The archon chuckled calmly.

The ravagers all opened fire as Seiras advanced, but to the Dark Eldars' utter disbelief, Seiras wasn't actually there where the dark lances fired into him.

The Archon was quick to figure it out as Seiras leapt onto one of the ravagers and started killing its passengers.

" **An illusion!"** the archon announced.

Seiras wasted no time killing the gunners and pilot of the nearest ravager before turning and firing a bolter shot into the pilot of a flanking Raider.

Seconds later, the wyches from the other Ravager and Raiders jumped over and began to start rabidly attacking him. Seiras psychically tossed them back in a shockwave of force before diving off the side. The pilot on the archon's ravager immediately flew away from the other two ravagers as it circled around. The Raider that had a surviving pilot followed him with its trueborn crew.

" **Hold your fire…let the Hekatarii have their fun,"** the archon spoke to his troops

Seiras briefly noticed the archon and half of his men were simply watching as he began to battle a pack of wyches. All of the female gladiatrixes were clad in black, white, and blue armour like the Kabalites. They all had variations of blue hair as well.

Seiras did not have time to exaimine them as he reflexively fought off the extremely fast and dangerous warriors. They moved twice as fast as the Kabalites he had been fighting up until now and were impossibly difficult to hit.

The surviving trueborns and the Archon's personal retinue all stood by and watched as Seiras battled the seven wyches. He was unable to avoid direct blows from the murderess aliens as they attacked him with a variety of horrific weapons.

One tried to hold him down with an agonizer whip as the others surrounded and stabbed into him from various angles.

Seiras furiously overpowered them as he made a wide swing with his halberd. It moved faster than some of the wyches were expecting and managed to cut two in half. The more experienced wyches likely knew the speed of Astartes and were smart enough to leap back.

The librarian hatefully fired the rest of his storm bolter's ammunition into the wyches, which they dodged and weaved through. Thankfully, he managed to shoot two more of them with his remaining shots. He was now down to three remaining wyches, and they all looked like they were taking him more seriously now.

Seiras drew his force sword as one came in with a low diving charge and managed to decapitate her much to the shock of the aliens present. Now dual-wielding his Nemesis Force Halberd and his personal force sword, the librarian twirled the weapons in furious threatening flurries which prevented the other two wyches from closing in again.

They both split up in opposite directions as they fired their alien guns at the Astartes from opposing angles. Seiras tried to channel his psychic powers again, but much to his disbelief, nothing happened. He felt a horrible draining presence nearby as his psychic powers briefly surged.

' _What is this?!'_ Seiras thought as an agonizing burning feeling filled his insides. He assumed it was poison as began to suffer in pain from whatever was affecting him.

He quickly recovered his senses just in time to block the front wych from impaling him with her glaive. She nimbly dodged and bended around as Seiras tried to cut her in half. The librarian was getting frustrated at his inability to hit her and growled when the other wych stabbed him from behind, forcing him to his knees.

" **This is better than the arenas! Look at how helpless he is!"** one of the trueborn kabalites laughed in enjoyment as if he was enjoying the show.

" **Get him Aelendriel! Make him suffer!"** one of the others added with amusement.

Anger surged through the Astartes as the trueborn began to cheer and laugh. His psychic powers surged with full force shortly afterward as he sent another psychic shockwave into the remaining wyches. With hatred, the librarian took advantage of their dazed state and charged the ravager that was still close by. He leapt on it and started killing its trueborn passengers. The Raider that remained nearby tried firing on him, but Seiras quickly fried its gunners with lightning as he cut down any nearby kabalites he could.

Several of the trueborns aboard the current ravager immediately fled. Among them included looked like another Dracon. They all retreated to the nearby Raider and flew over towards the Archon's Ravager to get away from the space marine librarian. Seiras was unfortunately only able to kill half of the trueborn before the two remaining wyches jumped onto the Ravager deck and flanked him again.

" **Archon! Should we just put him down?"** the surviving Dracon asked concerned after hastily reaching the Archon's Ravager.

" **No, let Aelendriel do it,"** he said carelessly.

Seiras had no time to contemplate on the Archon's lack of remorse for his own men as he attempted to avoid another combo from the two wyches.

The less prominent looking of the two wyches charged in to finish him off, but she was not expecting what came next. Seiras unleashed a maelstrom of psychic power completely electrocuting her and causing the wych to cry out in agony. Her crisped corpse fell over a moment later. This only left one wych now.

" **Having some trouble, Aelendriel? Just give the word and I'll have my incubi assist you,"** the archon spoke to the surviving wych.

" **I don't need their help! I've got this! This space marine is nothing compared to me!"** the wych now identified as Aelendriel announced proudly in her own language.

Seiras now had a moment to examine the remaining wych's appearance. She had purplish blue hair and prestigious looking armour. It was ridiculously promiscuous and looked ineffective, but the wych's combat skills and speed more than made up for her slutty attire.

The Astartes and the remaining wych dueled for about a minute straight in a clash of blades and dodging twirls. That minute might as well have been an hour, because Seiras used every last bit of his martial skill to last through it. He supplemented any psychic attacks he could when he saw an opening, but the wych moved too fast to hit with any obvious psychic attacks.

Despite her incredible speed and agility, the wych was too preoccupied in trying to break through his defenses and did not expect it when Seiras stabbed his force sword into the ground a moment later. He then gripped the Nemesis Force Halberd with two hands again as he stepped back.

The wych expectedly charged forward again, but to everyone' shock, the force sword erupted beneath her a moment later causing a small tempest of psychic power to consume her. It did not do much damage, but it gave Seiras the perfect opportunity to grab her glaive and rip it out of her hand.

He then turned and threw the spear towards the Archon's ravager as hard as possible. It almost hit the archon, but one of the Incubi managed to catch it mid air much to his astonishment.

 **"Nice catch,"** The archon chuckled with amusement to the incubus.

The now unarmed wych backed away defensively as she raised her blast pistol.

" **Do you need help, Aelendriel? I would hate to lose one of the cult's most esteemed succubi,"** the archon asked with amusement.

She looked completely furious and emotionally distraught as Seiras advanced.

" **I don't need your help Faelan! The monkeigh is mine to kill!"** she proudly denounced them.

 **"Are you sure you don't want my incubi to throw you the archite glaive back?"** He chuckled as if the situation was comical to him.

Aelendriel looked around at the ground for one of other dead wychs' weapons. Her brief distraction was all Seiras need to catch her off guard. The wych felt the blast pistol in her hand being ripped out of her grip a second later from Seiras' psychic powers. He tossed the weapon a considerable distance away leaving the succubus completely unarmed now.

She attempted to dive for an agonizer whip, but could only watch in horror as Seiras psychically ripped the weapon out of her reach. Now immediately in his range, he front kicked her. She managed to jump back enough to negate the worst of the blunt trauma, but the kick still sent her flying into a nearby building.

" **Fuck,"** he heard her say quietly to herself as she got up. For the first time in the fight, she actually looked concerned now as Seiras' eyes glowed again and psychic power began to crackle over his halberd.

Seiras immediately began to wildly swing the halberd attempting to finish her off. The wych dodged and weaved as best she could but was quickly tripped when Seiras psychically threw her to the ground mid dodge.

He then pinned her arm with his boot causing the wych to squirm around defenselessly. He wasted no time as he jabbed the halberd down to finish her off. Unfortunately, Seiras came up short as another pack of wyches showed up out of nowhere and swarmed him.

As they all cheap shot from various angles, Seiras was forced to huddle down defensively. One of newly arrived wyches then leapt on him and stabbed the Astartes in the chest. He stumbled backward and collapsed immediately. Shortly afterward, she got on top of him.

"That neurotoxin should be kicking in right about…now! Nighty night monkeigh," the wych on top of him spoke in gothic.

Seiras felt his vision getting hazy as the wych on top of him proudly beamed. He heard bolter fire a moment later, but everything sounded distorted.

"Load him up with the other prisoners! We need to move! They have a baneblade on the way." the archon announced as his ravager opened fire into an advancing predator and incoming Astartes.

"Seiras!" the librarian heard over his vox in a loud distorted tone. He soon lost consciousness in the following seconds, but not before realizing he was being dragged onto a ravager.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Alright guys, that's the end of this chapter for you. I'm sure it was fairly obvious that Dark Eldar were involved in all of this. They're finally here! Shit is about to get extremely bad now. If you made it this far, then thanks for reading. I hope you enjoy what I have planned in Commorragh! *Evil laughter intensifies* A lot of the dark eldar characters I've written are some evil mother fuckers.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Welcome to Commorragh**

 **Unknown location in the Webway, Seiras**

Seiras awoke in a panic and immediately jerked upright upon opening his eyes. He was surprised to find himself restrained to a chair of some kind. Over his arms and legs, he had metallic and shackle-like restraints tightly braced around him preventing the Astartes from moving.

He looked around urgently when it became apparent he couldn't move. As he turned his head, he felt a strange collar around his neck. It was incredibly uncomfortable as spikes from the object actually pierced into the flesh of his neck. It left a very painful stinging burn for a few moments, but he quickly adjusted to it.

"Finally awake, Monkeigh? Good," a voice came from the shadows. Even with his enhanced senses, Seiras couldn't detect where the voice was coming from in his dark cell. The voice was clearly feminine, but it carried a raspy and echoic tone that was both sultry and creepy. It was definitely the voice of an Eldar.

' _This is not good. If I'm where I think I am, then I just got captured by Dark Eldar.'_ Seiras thought concerned as he began to theorize on his situation. He chose to remain silent as he braced himself for what was to come.

"Have you nothing to say, Monkeigh? I suppose you wouldn't after suffering a pathetic failure and getting captured," the voice followed up.

Seiras continued to ignore it as he refused to give any kind of gratification to his captor by showing emotion in his current predicament. The librarian closed his eyes for a moment and attempted to channel forth his psychic powers.

The literal moment he did, the collar around his neck began to zap him with an excruciatingly painful shock. He grimaced at the horrible sensation and did his absolute best to not cry out in pain. He only half succeeded as he groaned in agony for a few moments. The pain was unlike anything he had ever felt before. Even his Astartes toughness could not brace its entirety.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Monkeigh…you see that collar around your neck is what we like to call a Psionic limiter collar. We normally reserve them for Warlocks and Farseers that we take prisoner, but seeing as how you're a psyker as well, we took every precaution," the voice explained.

Finally, the alien showed itself as it stepped into his line of sight from the shadows. Seiras was still recovering from the pain of the limiter collar but regained his composure as he stared the alien down.

' _It's a wych…she looks familiar and I recognize her voice,'_ Seiras thought briefly.

The female alien stared at him with a proud and arrogant smirk plastered widely across her face, "It's not often we capture space marines...they're usually impossible to take alive. You were quite the rare and delicious catch. I'm not too familiar with all your monkeigh space marine chapters, but I heard from the Archon that _you_ are a Deathwatch Marine. Quite the fortunate find we made haha! There will be plenty of glory for whoever gets to kill you. I might even get a promotion to succubus."

Like most of her kind, this wych was slender, muscular, and way taller than a normal human. If Seiras had to guess, she was about two meters in height if not slightly taller. She was adorned in midnight blue and black armour with white alien designs. Her armour was mismatched and covered random parts of her body. It seemed like a prestigious wychsuit if he had to guess. It consisted of some type of promiscuous black pants that were highly exposed with various openings down the side of her thighs. She wore black spiky taloned boots and both shins were armoured in black and blue. For some reason, only her left thigh was covered with the dark blue armour while other was exposed with bare flesh and unarmoured. A long dark blue loincloth went between her legs with a strange symbol adorned on it. What looked like human flesh and bone decorated the loincloth. Her left arm had one pauldron and a long armoured metal sleeve that went all the way towards the spiky looking gauntlet around her hand. Her right arm appeared to only be armoured around the forearm area with a strange blade curving out of it. Seiras couldn't help but think how impractical and ridiculous her armour actually looked when his gaze trailed to her torso.

She had some type of midriff breastplate that left her abdominal area completely exposed and despite it covering her upper torso and neck, there was still an opening where her cleavage was somewhat visible. Her chest was surprisingly not as flat as most Eldar females. In fact, her physique in general looked slightly more muscular than most Eldar as well. Her skin was a ghostly translucent colour that was so pale it almost looked bluish-grey in hue.

The alien had dark teal-coloured hair with white streaks adorned in long twin tails with loose bangs. Seiras had never once seen Eldar wear their hair in this way as he was used to seeing them with traditional hightails, long hair, or pristine buns of some nature. Upon looking at her for a moment, he immediately realized she was the Eldar that cheap shot him before he lost consciousness.

Her lips were a bluish black colour and her jaw was angular and androgynous. She had an expressive face that radiated a vibrant and sadistic personality. Despite her warrior appearance, he didn't see a single scar on her. Both of her long, pointed ears were pierced in multiple places with studs all throughout them. She had some warpaint around her eyes that was bluish black. Around each hair tie for her individual twin tails was a spiked blade that converged together in the front giving them the appearance of some type of crossed, crescent-bladed headdress. Aesthetically, it was actually an impressive piece of jewelry.

The Eldar's eyes were an unnatural shade of gold in the irises, but the white scleras of her eyes appeared completely blackened giving her an inhuman and feral appearance. Nevertheless, the alien carried herself in a regal, seductive way. She was surprisingly very attractive despite her bizarre alien appearance, but Seiras wouldn't dare to admit that even in his own thoughts. He rationalized her appeal as being flamboyantly elegant and distractingly aesthetic in appearance. She was both inhumanly hideous and exotically pretty.

The Eldar was quick to notice his silent examination of her and practically giggled at him, "Enjoying the view monkeigh? That's not what I was expecting out of you. I know I'm beautiful, but I didn't imagine a space marine would be so enraptured by it."

"No, you're disgusting, alien," Seiras couldn't help but say.

"Your eyes betray you, monkeigh…I know that look very well. Countless eyes gaze longingly upon my perfection in similar ways. I can't say that I blame you though. I am a gorgeous and superior being after all." the Eldar gloated. There wasn't a single drop of humility in her entire being. Like all Eldar, this one was a classic narcissist.

"I couldn't be sure of your gender when I first saw you," Seiras said callously.

"Trying to insult me now are you? How quaint. I'd almost be offended if I actually believed you. You and I both know that I'm beautiful. Just admit it and I promise I won't be offended," she said with a haughty smirk.

"I've seen better than you," he said coldly.

"Better what exactly? I doubt you've seen better Eldar." she chuckled with condescending amusement.

"Craftworlders have better complexions...and more elegant, practical armour. You and all wyches look ridiculous," Seiras replied in a smart-ass way.

This caused the alien to look at her skin for a moment almost subconsciously. She looked at him somewhat annoyed, "What?! Are you saying I'm too pale!?"

Seiras did not respond to her as he simply awaited an explanation to his capture. Several seconds passed as the female Eldar examined him thoroughly. She crossed her arms with a bored look on her face, "You're surprisingly handling this well. Most humans always want to know where they are and who I am. I take it you already understand the situation? Granted you would have to be stupid not to I suppose."

The librarian continued not to say anything else to her as he stoically watched the alien in silence. He really had nothing left to say to this alien as anything out of his mouth would more than likely be met with some type of condescending threat. The man simply stared at her instead and waited for an inevitable end to her mental foreplay. If there was one thing Seiras knew about Dark Eldar it's that they hated when their victims didn't show much emotion...hell that was Eldar in general.

The Dark Eldar was visibly disappointed in his lack of an emotional response. She seemed to quickly recover as she began to monologue, "You're at a loss for words I see...the crushing weight of your failures must really be hitting you hard right about now. It must be So heart-wrenching for you to realize that you're doomed and that your precious Emperor is powerless to help you."

Seiras said nothing again and blankly stared at her without any emotion. This only seemed to irritate the female alien as she got right in his face a moment later. The alien stared at the marine with a furious intensity now.

She gazed into his eyes for a long moment before she finally chuckled and got over her irritation, "You're a fine specimen. You'll make a nice slave."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he couldn't help but ask. Something about this alien was unsettling...more so than others. That and for some reason, he couldn't help but voice his confusion. This wych was clearly very experienced at manipulating others.

"Hmm...I wonder, what could I mean by that?" she asked in a rhetoric way as if mocking him for not understanding.

Seiras looked away in disgust, _'This is all a game to her. I shouldn't speak if I can avoid it.'_

"I know what you want it to mean…maybe it's true," she said in a teasing sadistic whisper as she licked her lips.

 _'Don't take her bait, Seiras...just shut up and she'll get bored of this,'_ Seiras told himself.

His silence continued which seemed to reinvigorate her anger immediately, "Say something, slave! Don't just look at me like I'm stupid! When your master addresses you, she expects an acknowledgment! I will not be ignored by some primitive monkeigh!"

"If I'm so primitive to your kind then who's the stupid one for trying to talk to me? Is there really any point to this conversation?" the man finally broke his silence and asked her.

She seemed a bit taken aback by his question as it actually was a fair point. She bit her lip in utter disapproval as she huffed, "Believe me when I say that speaking to you slow, dull creatures is a tiresome and mind-numbing chore for me. It's like talking to an animal...you can't even think on the same level we do."

"Yet the statement isn't wrong...why talk to me? Is this some form of torture? Or are you just slow in the head for talking to animals?" he insulted her dryly.

"Oh, you've got jokes do you?!" she hissed with anger.

"There's only one joke here and I'm looking at it right now," Seiras said stoically.

Surprisingly, the wych didn't lose her mind. She cocked her head at him with a smug grin, "I love slaves like you. Strong-willed and fearless slaves are my absolute favorite. They're always the ones who want to act tough and they think I can't break them. When I finally do, it's an incredible euphoria to dominate their spirit completely. Watching you eat your words and breaking down that pride of yours will be so pleasurable to experience."

"Was I the only space marine you captured?" Seiras decided to ask despite knowing the futility of it.

"I'm the one asking the questions around here! You will learn your place soon enough! We are your masters now!" she exclaimed aggressively.

The man sighed inwardly, ' _I hate Eldar...'_

"What's your name then…master?" Seiras asked her with a calm and fearless tone. It almost seemed casual and sarcastic despite her threat. She definitely took notice of his continued lack of fear or concern and took a moment to think of a response.

She sneered at him proudly, "You wish to know? Why should I tell you? My name is too beautiful to be spoken by your pitiful monkeigh tongue."

' _I'll put an end to this stupid mind game she's trying to play_ ,' Seiras thought annoyed.

"Not like it really matters what your name is anyway...you're just another Eldar. You're nothing but another one of the pathetic knife-eared xenos who's only lasting legacy was the creation of a Chaos God. In the face of death, you're all the same cowards. I hope your suffering is eternal when Slaanesh claims your soul. Send Slaanesh my regards when you see it. Your race deserves to be swallowed by the warp," Seiras replied with a calm and hateful stoicism.

The alien's eyes went wide with horror as her mouth opened with suspense. She seemed startled by his statement. He wasn't sure if it was the use of Slaanesh's name in front of her or the threat itself. Whatever it was, Seiras' words seemed to completely deflate the Eldar's ego as she closed her mouth and glared.

After a brief silence she finally spoke, "You...dare?! YOU DARE SPEAK THAT NAME HERE!?"

"Yes, I dare. Slaanesh, Slaanesh, Slaanesh Slaan-" he kept repeating the name which caused the Eldar to drop low and cover her ears.

"STOP IT! NOW! What kind of space marine are you? Do you want to summon daemons here?!" She shouted angrily in a loud childish fit.

Finally, Seiras stopped as he looked at her curiously, "So...when does my real torture begin? Are you in charge around here, Wych?"

She collected herself after a moment and stepped towards him imposingly, "The Archon wants you alive and unscathed for now. He's turning you over to our cult. Since space marines are a rare catch, they're far more valuable to kill in front of an arena of spectators in Commorragh than to torture like normal humans."

"Lucky me then," Seiras replied almost smugly towards her.

"You're a fool if you think dying in the arena is a better fate. The Hekatarii will make your death as slow and entertaining as possible. Or maybe they'll humiliate you in battle, spare your life, and then let the haemonculi alter you for a long and torturous death afterward. Though, I wouldn't mind turning your skin into a blanket for my new bed," the eldar beamed proudly.

"Giving me a chance to kill you is probably not the best idea alien," Seiras said coldly without any fear in his voice.

"Is that what you think? Here's a reality check monkeigh! You don't get to fight with your armour or weapons in our arenas hahaha!" the Eldar laughed at him.

"So, we're in Commorragh then?" Seiras changed the subject with a stalwart expression.

The Eldar seemed a bit annoyed that he didn't retaliate and finally nodded, "We're in the webway, but we'll be there soon. That means you should abandon any hope of escaping while you're here. Even if by some miracle you survive your first battle, you'll only keep fighting until you lose…then you get to enjoy the real torture haha. You're never going to leave! I'm going to break you, space marine!"

"Well thanks for the information, wych. So...are you someone important around here or just a messenger? Where's the other wych I was fighting before you all swarmed me?" Seiras asked in hopes of irritating her further.

His smartass comment seemed to get under her skin quite easily. She growled, "I'm no messenger! I'm a Syren of the Cult of Eternal Night. I'm a high-ranking wych, a celebrity, and a trueborn in Commoragh I'll have you know! I lead Hekatrix Bloodbrides for the Cult of Eternal Night and my cousin is the Archon! To even suggest I'm some lowly messenger…how dare you! Maybe it hasn't occurred to you yet, but _I'M_ the one who took _YOU_ down!"

"Was that you? It's difficult to tell when you all look the same," Seiras replied carelessly.

"I look nothing like the others! I-" the wych stopped mid-sentence when she realized that Seiras was purposely trying to annoy her. She stopped speaking and simply glared hatefully at him for a moment afterward.

He took the brief silence as a chance to continue, "I've never heard of the Cult of Eternal Night. I have heard of the Cult of Strife though. They're a much more successful wych cult I take it? Your cult must not be very relevant if I haven't heard of you."

His comment seemed to easily infuriate the wych. She pulled out some type of shock rod and jabbed him with it angrily. He was ready for the pain this time and managed to brace himself for it.

The wych hissed angrily at him after pulling it back, "You're really starting to infuriate me, human! We are just as capable as them! You're lucky I can't do any permanent damage to you yet! I've inflicted agony on countless others for saying something a fraction as offensive as that! You're only going to make your suffering more terrible!"

Seiras quickly recovered and looked at her seriously, "As if it matters. You've already promised me endless suffering. It's good to know that you can't control yourself though."

This comment seemed to ignite intense anger within her as she started to beat him repeatedly with the shock rod she was carrying. Seiras would be lying if he said it didn't hurt, but he endured it until she stopped.

Once she was finished with her tantrum, Seiras shook his head, "You're way too quick to anger. It's going to get you killed one day."

She seemed to calm down a moment later and stared at him for a brief moment of silence. Finally, she spoke again, "I've been told that before by a Harlequin. How interesting..."

"Why did you come here to talk to me then if it wasn't to deliver a message? Is this you trying to intimidate me? It's a rather pathetic effort if you must know. Dark Eldar are pathetic. All they know how to do is run and hide...and prey on the weak. You don't have any real warriors in your ranks," he followed up.

She seemed annoyed, but slightly invigorated by their conversation, "You're a cocky and witty one, aren't you? I'll see to it that you suffer the greatest indignities for this, Monkeigh. You're on my bad side...trust me when I say I intend on making your life a living hell."

"Nothing you do to me will ever top what Slaanesh will do to you when she gets your soul," Seiras countered causing the Eldar to get upset again.

She instantly punched him in the face as hard as she could and followed up by slashing him several times with her arm blade. Blood oozed slowly from the Space Marine's wounds as he maintained a strong glare towards her.

It only took her a moment to calm down as she met his gaze again for a long silent moment. Finally, she spoke again, "I'll tell you why I came here, Monkeigh. I just wanted to see you for myself. I've personally never captured a space marine before. Call me curious...some of the slaves claim that space marines are the greatest of humanity's warriors. Hahaha, what a joke. I took you down in seconds!"

"So, you mentioned something about an arena? You intend to battle me there in front of the city?" he asked.

She nodded, "Precisely...your fellow human slaves will weep in despair when they see one of their precious space marines defeated so easily. I can already imagine their suffering, anguished faces. I can't wait to see them. It's even better watching than watching children cry."

"You would fight me alone in front of your kin?" the man asked with a light laugh.

Her face lit up in anger upon seeing him laugh at her threat, "What's so funny?! You think I can't kill you in battle? You think I'm afraid of some overgrown monkeigh?! I'm the one who took you down in the first place! Have you already forgotten that you're going to be unarmed and unarmoured?!"

"I think you've been afraid all your life, wych...I can see the fear in your eyes right now. All this bravado of yours is as hollow as the void you call a soul. I've personally slain thousands of your kind. What is some low-ranking wych like you going to do to me in an arena battle?" he replied with a calm stare.

Seiras felt a sickening chill run down his spine as the Eldar pulled out a syringe and injected him with something. Immediately, it caused him to start hallucinating as everything in the room became darker and more horrifying.

If it wasn't for his Astartes indoctrination, he would likely have been panicking in fear from the horrible images he was now seeing. It almost rivaled some of the weird sights he saw in the warp itself.

"That's called a Psychedelic Enhancer Stimulant. It'll keep you awake and entertained for a few days. It should wear off by the time we reach Commorragh…enjoy the ride, Monkeigh," the wych laughed at him before leaving.

Seiras was suffering the worst psychosis he had ever experienced before. His senses were all overloading on the wildly strange hallucinations he was seeing and hearing. Things almost appeared to go in slow motion too much to his confusion.

This drug was likely some type of torture stimulant as it prolonged psychosis in its victims. The Eldar wych must have given him a ridiculously large dosage because he was beginning to experience some type of seizure from it in slow motion.

Luckily his extra Astartes organs were able to negate any fatal or damaging effects, but unfortunately, he still suffered a long hallucinogenic trip on this drug.

 **Days Later**

Seiras had no idea how much time had passed since being injected with the drug from the wych, but his body had finally managed to detoxify enough to allow him some semblance of clarity. The past few days felt like weeks to him, and if it wasn't for his mental willpower, he would have easily gone insane from the experience.

He now found himself shackled with multiple chains and restraints with no armour on. In fact, all he was wearing were simply loincloth shorts, his collar, and his chains by the looks of things. With his clarity mostly returned, he looked around confused.

He was currently strapped down to a strange floating device with multiple Dark Eldar kabalites escorting him. His awareness was quick to pick up on the fact that he was being hauled into some type of special prison. The entire horizon was covered in towering buildings and bizarre alien architecture. The twisted black shapes and false light in Commorragh seemed especially unsettling to him.

Eventually the Dark Eldar forced him off of the floating device and prodded him countless times with their unusual looking shock rods. As he got to his feet and endured the shocks, Seiras saw that both of his legs were chained together and that his arms were chained to his waist.

The large escort of the Kabalites brought him through a large series of doors and eventually up to several prominent looking Dark Eldar.

Seiras immediately recognized the Archon by his voice. The Kabal leader was now without his helmet, but Seiras quickly confirmed it was him.

" **So, our captive Space Marine made it here alive. Good…Very good,"** the archon said with a wide grin.

" **Why does he have a limiter collar?"** a wych next to him asked as she examined Seiras closely by walking around him.

" **Well Renfaeda, not only did we bring your wych cult a Space Marine, but this one is apparently a librarian as well. He's a psyker,"** the archon explained.

" **A psyker?! You brought one into Commorragh?!"** the wych asked seriously.

" **Relax…he's only a human psyker. Besides, that limiter collar will ensure he can't use any of those powers here. It serves to nullify warlocks, so I highly doubt a human would overpower it,"** the archon explained.

" **Fair point, brother. I've never seen a space marine psyker before…how interesting. You know I love new things,"** the wych said having immediately gotten over her concern about the situation.

" **He's yours to do with as you please, Renfaeda…consider it a gift for your continued efforts, dear sister. Your bloodbrides performed well in capturing him,"** the archon said to the wych.

Having eavesdropped on their entire conversation, Seiras was now aware of something. The archon was the brother to the wych standing next to him. Judging by her appearance, Seiras couldn't help but wonder if she was a high ranking one. He could see the resemblance between them as they both had dark blue hair fashioned in similar high tails with sweeping bangs. Surprisingly, the Archon had longer hair than the wych, and that was saying something.

Seiras briefly recalled learning from Nemias about the rank structures of Dark Eldar before, but all he really learned about it were the basics that the Deathwatch knew. Archons were supreme leaders of a warband called a Kabal that typically had a second in command called a Hierarch. Below them were Dracons which were like captains. Below them were Sybarites which were like sergeants. Trueborn were typically always higher ranking than Sybarites, but the rest of the command structure was a mystery to him. Seiras didn't fully understand how Wych Cults were structured, but he did know that they were led by Succubi, and that bloodbrides were typically a Succubi's personal entourage. The wych that captured him mentioned leading bloodbrides, so he quickly figured that a Syren was some type of second in command to a succubus.

There was no doubt in his mind that the Archon's sister was a Succubus. He made sure to keep his gaze down and his expression blank in order to conceal his reaction to their conversation. The Dark Eldar had no idea he could understand their language. Unlike with the Craftworlders from before, he could play dumb with these Drukhari and learn valuable information.

Next to the Archon was also another Dark Eldar female. She didn't appear to be a wych or a kabalite warrior and was wearing a dress by the looks of it. Her hair was in some strange elaborate style with a hightail on top and twin braids wrapped in drill like coils down each side of her head. It was mostly green with a bit of black. She also had an abundance of makeup and jewelry as well.

' _Is that some kind of noble or something?_ ' Seiras wondered as he tried to figure out what the Dark Eldar in the dress could possibly be.

" **I would like to go on the next raid if you'd take me, Faelan. I wasn't aware you were hunting for space marines. That must have been so exhilarating ,"** the green haired alien spoke up.

Her voice was incredibly sultry, and it carried a bit of weight behind it. Seiras found it strange that she would casually address the archon in such a way.

" **It was quite a surprise when we found them. We were making a usual run on some monkeigh hive world and a group of them were there. You were likely better off here, Maeralya. I can't risk my favorite Lhamaean now can I?"** the archon replied.

" **Really? Was it dangerous, Faelan?"** she said doubtfully.

The archon nodded, **"Considering I lost a third of my raiding force, I would say so."**

" **I'm surprised you're not furious. You never have that many casualties,"** the Lhmaean said with concern.

" **I was annoyed at first, but it turned out to be interesting. Daeyal conveniently died with the vanguard, and the Kabal got firsthand experience against space marines. We also got a very large haul of slaves. Overall, it was successful."** he replied.

" **A shame you didn't invite me then…I can handle myself quite well as you know,"** she replied in an overtly seductive way.

" **Lhamaeans are only useful in the bedroom and not the battlefield,"** Renfaeda interrupted with a disapproving attitude.

' _What in the warp is a Lhamaean? Is she his mate or something?'_ Seiras thought confused.

" **Is that what you think?"** Maeralya half-demanded to the succubus.

Renfaeda looked over at her and spoke bluntly **, "Maybe Faelan just enjoys having time away from you since you never leave him alone. He needs his space."**

The green haired drukhari frowned before speaking in a dramatic moan, **"Maybe I am a bit attached, but you know I hate being parted from you, Faelan. It saddens my heart to see you having so much fun without me. Perhaps I haven't yet proven how satisfying and thrilling my company can truly be…"**

" **Can you save your foreplay for later, Maeralya? It's making me sick, and we're all standing right here,"** Renfaeda said distastefully.

" **Oh of course, dear Faeda…I forgot you get jealous,"** the Lhamaean said with a haughty smirk.

Renfaeda looked at her unamused, **"It's Renfaeda to you! Only my family gets to call me Faeda, so spare me the familiarity, you courtesan bitch. My brother likes you…that's the only reason I haven't turned your skin into my bathrobe yet."**

" **You're as pleasant as always my lady…though I had hoped that we could one day join our families. I actually consider you as a sister already,"** Maeralya said with a venomous smile.

Renfaeda ignored her as she turned her gaze to her brother, " **Faelan, what's with this space marine by the way? Why is he so submissive already? The last Space Marine we captured was far livelier. Did someone take away my chance to break him?"**

 **"Nelfaera and your Hekatrix Bloodbrides were the ones that actually captured him. She was very excited about capturing her first space marine...though she was unhappy when I told her that the human wasn't to be touched until you made a decision on what to do with him. I'm not sure why he's in that passive state. He put up a surprisingly good fight before getting overwhelmed,"** Faelan, the archon remarked.

 **"Well Nelfaera's already spoiled my fun with whatever she's done to him! I'll have a word with her! I thought I made it clear that we don't alter captured Space Marines until after they get defeated in the arenas!"** Renfaeda growled.

 **"Try not to kill her, Renfaeda. Nelfaera is** **our cousin...and we try to respect blood in this family,"** Faelan responded seriously.

 _'Nelfaera...so that what that cursed xenos bitch is called.'_ Seiras made a mental note.

 **Lady Renfaeda...I believe the Syren Hekatarii injected the prisoner with a cocktail of a psychedelic drugs. He's been flailing in madness for the past few cycles,"** one of the escorting Dark Eldar kabalites explained.

The wych looked at him dangerously, **"Is that right?! None of you thought to stop her?! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't mount your head on a wall, Sybarite!"**

 **"My apologies...we couldn't exactly stop her without using force. Plus, she is a trueborn, a wych...and your cousin. I didn't have the authority to stop her..."** he trailed off skittishly.

 **"Could you not have said anything to Archon Faelan?"** she said with a disgusted sneer.

 **"I did not want to disturb him with something trivial..."** the sybarite said fearfully.

Renfaeda looked at her brother and rose a brow. She didn't say a word as her brother simply shrugged carelessly.

 **"Forgive my ignorance,"** the sybarite apologized skittishly.

 **"No matter...I will see to it that Nelfaera stays in line. She is always testing my patience! She forgets that I rule the Wych Cult!"** Renfaeda hissed furiously.

' _I should be wary of her. Those two are undoubtedly the rulers of this place,'_ Seiras thought as he briefly looked at the Archon and his Succubus sister. He didn't look at them long though as he gazed back at the ground.

 **"Thank you, Lady Renfaeda! Your mercy will not go to waste,"** the fearful sybarite replied with a relieved voice.

Right after he finished his statement, Renfaeda drew a blade and swung towards the sybarite's neck. Her blade stopped right as it reached his throat. The movement was so fast that even Seiras barely caught the blur of it. Her precise control in stopping it was even more impressive than the speed in Seiras' opinion. Had she done it to him, Seiras doubted he would have been able to avoid it.

 **"Mercy? You think I'm being merciful? Don't go around saying stupid things like that or I'll mount your head on my brother's throne! The only reason you're allowed to live for this failure is because you are not allowed to kill Nelfaera. Don't ever mistake my decisions for weakness or sympathy...your life means nothing to me!"** Renfaeda ranted dangerously.

 **"I understand Lady Renfaeda,"** the sybarite replied as calmly as he could.

The whole exchange caused a great deal of concern for the various kabalites as they all bowed respectfully or stood still in silent fear.

The archon simply chuckled as he glanced at his sister, **"Truly you have a way with words, Faeda."**

 **"See to it that you take advantage of this opportunity to earn my forgiveness. It's the only one you're ever going to get,"** Renfaeda said sinisterly as she retracted her blade.

 **"Anything you wish. I am your humble servant."** he bowed his head.

 **"Nobody touches the monkeigh again! He's for the arenas, not your amusement! If anyone disobeys that command, then put them to the blade! That includes my petulant cousin!"** she threatened.

 **"What are we to do with him for the time being then?"** the sybarite asked.

 **"Throw him in the nearest slave holding chamber with the other humans. I want to get their hopes up so that they can all despair after he dies. Apparently, their wretched kind venerates Space Marines in some pathetic religious way,"** she said with a sadistic grin.

 **"Your wicked mind is admirable, Renfaeda. I approve of that decision."** a nearby voice spoke up.

It was a haemonculus from what Seiras could tell. He had only seen a few in his life, and found them to be repulsive, evil sadists. This one was female by the looks of it, and she put daemons to shame with the amount evil he saw in her eyes. Seiras felt an unusual and eerie sensation when he made eye contact with the haemonculus. Part of him wondered if he was feeling fear.

 _'I didn't realize there were females of those things,'_ Seiras thought horrified.

The haemonculus had four arms by the looks of it, and additional bodily extensions. The two center arms on each side were biological arms and looked mostly normal minus their talon-like nails. Two additional arms extended above the natural ones and looked bio-mechanical. One had weapons attached and another had surgical instruments. The second one bore resemblance to a techmarine servo arm. Strange bony spine-like extensions were sticking out of her back. There were three in total. One practically stretched into some type of tail, and the other two came up to her shoulders sticking outward. To Seiras' disgust, they were all able to move. The twisted alien stood taller than her kin and was close to his height if Seiras had to guess. She was robed in beautifully hideous blue and black alien garb. It looked somewhat like a dress, though Seiras didn't really think that was a good comparison as it had spiked armour on it as well adorned with human skin. Her feet were monstrous with long sharp nails just like her natural hands, and she was barefoot.

The xenos abomination also had hair much to his confusion. All of the previous haemonculi he had encountered were bald...although, they had all been male as well. The female haemonculus had long pitch-black hair reaching down her back. It went from straight to triple braided past her shoulders. It almost looked a bit elegant. Her irises were hideous neon green slits within pitch black scleras. They looked feline and almost daemonic. Oddly enough however, her face appeared somewhat aesthetic and not as horribly monstrous as the rest of her body. In fact, she had some likeness to a porcelain doll he had once seen on Meridian…only more disturbing and evil looking. That little detail digging in his memories made him even more uncomfortable by the Eldar's appearance.

The Haemonculus eyed Seiras with gleeful eyes, **"It has been quite some time since I last got to dissect a space marine. Make sure you send him my way whenever you're finished, my dear."**

 **"Of course, Melisara, you'll get plenty of time to play with him too,"** Renfaeda remarked as her eyes lingered briefly on Seiras' submissive form.

For some reason, Seiras couldn't look away from the haemonculus now identified as Melisara. The evil creature tilted her head with amusement and spoke in gothic to him, "Is there a reason you're staring at me, space marine?"

Seiras did not respond as he looked away finally. This xenos was actually intimidating him unlike the wyches or the kabalites. He quickly regained his bearings as he returned to a stoic disposition. Much to his horror, the haemonculus levitated over towards him and grabbed him by the chin.

Nobody seemed to protest this despite Renfaeda's threat to kill anyone who touched Seiras. The succubus herself seemed curious at Melisara's actions as the haemonculus guided Seiras' head upward and took a closer look at him. Seiras remained calm as the alien turned his neck side to side examining the limiter collar. She then quickly plugged something into his collar. Seiras felt a burning sting as pain flooded his body. It was uncomfortable, but not unbearable.

The haemonculus frowned in disappointment a moment later, **"Hmmm...the agony circuit on the collar is already set to maximum pain output. It doesn't appear to be affecting him as much as I'd expect. He has a remarkable resilience to the collar. That or he's numb to this pain. The last time I set one of these to max was on a warlock. She screamed nonstop for several cycles until her voice gave out."**

 **"What are you saying exactly, Melisara?"** Archon Faelan asked curiously.

 **"The maximum setting barely appears to be affecting him. Interesting...I should build a better collar for this space marine. He appears to have a very high pain threshold. I can't wait to test its limits,"** Melisara remarked with admiration as she let go of Seiras' chin and neck.

 **"Well I doubt we'll have him for long. Space marines are usually more willful than he is. Anyone this submissive can't be much of a challenge to us,"** Renfaeda remarked with disappointment.

Before any of them could say another word, a familiar figure approached the group. It was the same wych from before with the teal twin-tailed hair. Seiras quickly recognized her as Nelfaera.

 **"I wouldn't be so sure, Faeda...that one has a mouth on him,"** she interrupted.

 **"Nelfaera! I was just about to go find you. Explain what you did to the monkeigh! This worthless sybarite told me you gave him a cocktail of psychedelic enhancers...why?!"** Faeda demanded.

 **"Forgive me, exalted cousin...he was very disrespectful and willful. He kept saying the name of She-who-thirsts and told me that he thought I was a joke. I just gave him a little something to punish his attitude. It didn't do any permanent damage,"** the twin-tailed Syren replied.

 **"You gave him psychosis enhancers? Did you happen to give the space marine anything to numb his sensations?"** Melisara asked the Syren.

Nelfaera shook her head at the haemonculus **, "No, I gave him a cocktail of my psychosis sensation enhancers mixed with the hallucinogenic time stoppers to prolong his high. If anything, it should have put him in more pain."**

 **"That would explain his passive behavior quite well...he's likely recovering from it. Although it only makes it more impressive that he's endured so much pain. This is truly interesting,"** the haemonculus remarked with fascinated malevolence.

 **"You're lucky it didn't kill him you overzealous fool. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to capture space marines alive? If we weren't related, you'd be dead right now,"** Renfaeda hissed.

The syren looked over at the succubus with contempt, **"It wasn't that hard for me, but I hear you, Faeda. I won't do anything else to alter him physically. You have my word beloved mistress..."**

 **"Interesting choice of words, little cousin,"** Archon Faelan chuckled.

 **"I'll tell you one thing though, that monkeigh is not a weak one, Faeda. Even Faelan can attest to that,"** Nelfaera shook her head.

 **"Really? How so? I have yet to hear the details about how the raid went. All I heard was you and the rest of my bloodbrides captured him. You're telling me this space marine is strong?"** Renfaeda scoffed.

 **"Nelfaera is correct, Faeda. He is a Deathwatch Space Marine. They're more skilled than their regular counterparts, and they excel at killing our kind. This one in fact slaughtered many of my warriors as well as all of Aelendriel's Bloodbrides. While it was mostly through the use of his psychic powers, he made quick work of Aelendriel in melee combat as well. She would have died had Nelfaera and your bloodbrides arrived any later. It's probably good that they did. My Incubi looked eager to fight him and would have murdered this space marine had the need arose,"** Faelan explained.

 **"Are you being serious?"** Renfaeda perked up with excitement, **"he actually bested Aelendriel…a succubus in melee combat?! He'll be an exciting contender then. I'll bet her ego is stinging from a loss to a monkeigh. Hahaha! No wonder she hasn't shown her face yet. She's usually the first one to come up and brag to me."**

 **"Aelendriel is weak...I would have taken my time getting there had I known it would prevent me from saving her useless ass. She doesn't deserve to be a Succubus…especially after embarrassing herself on that raid,"** Nelfaera remarked with obvious jealousy and bitterness.

 **"You're just saying that because she's more graceful and well-liked than you. Though it is rather funny. I've never seen her mess up this badly,"** Renfaeda said with a smug grin.

 **"I see it all the time. She's overrated, cousin. I'm better at fighting and killing...I'm even faster and prettier than she is."** Nelfaera countered.

 **"So, what? There's a lot more that goes into being a succubus than just that. One must be well-liked and adored. If being efficient at killing is all you're good at then you should have just joined an Incubi Coven and started worshipping Khaine like some religious lunatic. We're not just some mindless murder cult, we're celebrity athletes,"** Renfaeda replied.

The archon's flanking Incubi faced her direction. Seiras couldn't see their expressions, but he had a feeling they didn't approve of the comment.

' _Khaine…wasn't that the Eldar God of War? Kalyra told me that all Aspect Warriors venerate Khaine, but I wasn't aware Dark Eldar worshipped him,'_ Seiras thought curiously.

" **Being a Succubus is about being a graceful athlete and a celebrity as well as being a skilled fighter. I'll let you fight one of the others for a Succubus title whenever you're more popular Nelfaera...Assuming you don't go mouthing off to me with that temper of yours,"** Renfaeda followed up.

" **Now now, Lady Renfaeda, I believe your cousin has every right to voice a concern here. She clearly succeeded where her superior failed. She's also more beautiful and skilled than Aelendriel in my opinion. Would that not warrant a chance for her to prove herself?"** Maeralya interrupted.

" **It certainly would,"** Nelfaera muttered under her breath.

The blue haired succubus sent a death glare towards the courtesan, **"I don't recall asking for your opinion in matters regarding MY WYCH CULT! The next time I want your advice, I'll ask for it you useless whore!"**

" **As you say, Renfaeda,"** the courtesan said haughtily as she clenched onto the archon. The nearby incubi visibly twitched closer upon seeing her do so.

' _The politics here would put that hive world aristocracy to shame,'_ Seiras thought briefly as he carefully observed the aliens without drawing attention to himself.

 **"C'mon, Faeda…please let me fight the space marine. I captured him after all! That's just the kind of big event I need to branch out and gain a larger fanbase!"** Nelfaera demanded.

 **"No...Aelendriel would never forgive me if I passed the match to you. If she lost to him before, then her reputation is at stake. Aelendriel will get a chance to regain her status in a rematch with the monkeigh,"** Renfaeda laughed.

Nelfaera sighed, **"Why show her any sympathy and give her a second chance!? She's an embarrassment to our cult for letting a human beat her. It should be me fighting him…this isn't fair, Faeda!"**

 **"Nothing in Commorragh is fair. I thought you'd have learned that by now. You should learn to have more respect for your superiors…maybe then you'll get somewhere. You're acting like a little brat,"** the blue haired succubus said with distaste in her voice.

" **You…You're doing this to punish me aren't you?!"** Nelfaera demanded bitterly.

" **Would I do that to my beloved little cousin? You know how much I spoil you, Nelfaera…perhaps you shouldn't bite the hand that feeds you,"** Renfaeda said darkly.

The Syren's face was one of bitter disgust. She begrudgingly nodded, **"I suppose so, cousin."**

A moment later Renfaeda glanced over towards the retinue around Seiras, **"Sybarite, what are you still doing here?! Take the monkeigh to the slave holding chamber nearest to the arena. We'll be by later to pick him up."**

 **"At once,"** he replied as he and his kabalites began to guide Seiras away from the Archon's little family group.

 _'Too bad I didn't learn anything useful about these xenos other than their names and ranks. It seems like Nelfaera has a strained relationship with her family. Whatever...it's not like that information is going to help me. Hopefully, I can pick up something relevant to help me escape here. If I can get one of their ships, I can pilot it out of here. They'd never expect that. Though I have no idea how to get out of this place even if I get that far,'_ Seiras thought to himself.

He continued on his escorted path towards a large looking building in the distance. Even from the outside, Seiras could smell a multitude of troubling scents. As the kabalites guided Seiras into a massive chamber, he quickly realized it was some type of slave pen. He briefly looked down from the bridge he was being escorted across into the large open area which looked worse than any hive slum he had ever seen. It was mostly full of miserable, malnourished looking humans, though Seiras did catch sight of a few abhumans and xenos. Many of them were unknown to him, but he did spot a few Tau and Kroot slaves much to his curiosity.

After crossing the bridge, he came around to some type of lift which took them all down into the slave pens below. Upon reaching the entrance, the Sybarite and his Kabalite escorts stopped.

The Kabalites looked like they didn't want to go too far into the chamber lest they risk being attacked by the mob of slaves. The Sybarite looked over at the Space Marine and spoke in Gothic, "Don't try to escape, Monkeigh...even if you can break out of this chamber, you have no way of leaving Commoragh."

Seiras didn't say anything to the sybarite as his nearby warriors all pointed splinter weapons at him forcing Seiras to enter the area.

"Don't get too comfortable here. The Hekatarii will come for you later," the sybarite said as he and his warriors began to walk away.

Seiras wasn't surprised that they left him chained up, but it wasn't much of a problem as he already thought of a way to break out of them. Once the warriors were out of sight, Seiras found a nearby wall for cover, and began to gather up acid in his Betcher's glands.

Leaning over, he began to chew on the chains holding his wrists together. Although the metal was very tough, he eventually managed to weaken it enough to break the chain apart. He was careful not to get any acid on his skin as he did the same for the rest of the restraints. In a few short minutes, he was fully free of the restraints.

He carefully hid the chains in the hopes that the Dark Eldar wouldn't figure out how he broke them. It might have been a folly endeavor but considering how much of a disgusting mess this massive slave chamber was, they likely wouldn't find them anytime soon.

After concealing the shackles, Seiras decided to explore for a bit and wandered around a few tight corners before reaching an open looking plaza area. A prison yard might have been a better description in all honesty. The various slaves in the chamber all kept their distance as the unarmoured space marine walked into its main plaza like area. The majority of the people there looked like they had been brutally tortured and mutilated to some degree or another. Grisly corpses and trophies decorated the walls and ceiling as well. This chamber would have been utterly horrifying to a normal person...but he had seen worse as an Astartes, and he was desensitized to gore and horror.

After another short minute, various slaves began to gather around at a distance and stare at him. Seiras glanced over at some of the closest slaves and walked past them. The towering Astartes greatly intimidated the slaves as they all looked up at him with disbelieving eyes.

The men he approached immediately began to back away hastily as they got a good look at him. With his enhanced senses, the librarian could overhear countless slaves gossiping in guttural forms of low gothic.

One nearby conversation caught his attention when he heard a woman call him a space marine.

"T-that's a space marine!" she announced to some of the nearby slaves.

This revelation spread throughout the mob like wildfire as countless others repeated the words, " _Space marine."_

Before Seiras knew it, a huge crowd was now gathering around him to watch him from a safe distance. They were all mostly human, but he did notice a few Tau and Kroot mingling amongst them for some reason. Most of the people in range of him looked either terrified or awestruck. Some showed a combination of both as they shrunk under his gaze.

Finally, an older looking man walked up to him. If Seiras had to guess, this man was likely a spokesperson or some kind of unofficial leader for this particular slave chamber. He was covered in scars and looked ragged and beaten. The man was old, but still looked somewhat healthy and strong compared to the others.

He addressed Seiras as he approached, "I can't believe my eyes...an Adeptus Astartes?!"

"Who are you?" Seiras asked bluntly.

"Forgive me, my lord...I'm one of the spokesmen around here. I try to help the newcomers when I can. My name is Bren Morrius. I used to be a part of the Ultramar Auxilia PDF force. I'm one of the few soldiers left in this place, so the others kind of look up to me," he replied.

"That would explain why you speak gothic properly," Seiras noted somewhat rudely.

The man nodded his head, "Yes of course my lord. I had experience with Ultramarines before, so I know a bit more than the average man...especially around here."

"You've actually met Ultramarines?" Seiras asked for confirmation.

The man nodded, "Yes, my lord."

"I see..." Seiras said emotionlessly. He saw no point in trying to inspire or learn from these people as they were simply uneducated, pitiful slaves with no hope of ever escaping.

 _'That wych put me in here so I could give them hope...only for her to take it away. That's evil,'_ Seiras thought as he took in the various expressions and curious gazes of the nearby crowd.

"What chapter do you hail from, my lord?" Morrius asked.

"It doesn't matter...I won't be around long enough to get acquainted with any of you," Seiras remarked carelessly.

Seiras could almost feel the sadness at his blatant rejection of the other slaves. Much to their dismay, the space marine simply began to walk away without remorse as many cleared a path for him to pass.

"That's one of the Emperor's angels? He...he doesn't even care about what's happening here. Aren't space marines supposed to save people? We're nothing to him...we must be nothing to the Emperor as well," Seiras overheard a sad, despairing slave tell his friend.

In truth, he did feel remorse that he had to be distant from these unfortunate people, but it was for the best. His chances of survival were low, but theirs was almost non-existent. He had no intentions of giving people false hope or trying to be some hero. There was truly nothing he could do for them unless he could somehow kill thousands of Kabalites, steal a ship, and fly them all out of the webway. As terrible a thought as it was, he knew his life was far more valuable than all of theirs combined. His survival was his only priority here now.

"Angel!" Seiras heard someone cry out.

To his astonishment, it was a girl. She looked like a teenager, but Seiras couldn't quite guess what her age was. She was clearly past puberty, but definitely wasn't mature enough to be considered a woman. The girl ran in front of him and spoke her mind, "You're one of the Emperor's angels, right?"

Seiras said nothing as he stared at the adolescent. Surprisingly, she kept her resolve despite the towering superhuman staring her down.

"There are bad people in here who help the masters hurt us...hive gangsters. I pray to the Emperor every day for someone to save us...Can you do something...anything?" she asked in a pitifully sad way. There were tears in her eyes.

She looked like she had been beaten recently, and Seiras couldn't help but notice her clothes were torn in peculiar ways. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened to her. He found it somewhat remarkable that she had the courage to speak to him though. This girl was desperate for help.

Part of him was curious about what she was talking about, but Seiras didn't want to give her false hope by asking about her problems. If it wasn't for his collar, he would have tried to read her mind _. 'I can't help anyone here...it's only going to make them targets for the Dark Eldar.'_ Seiras thought as the girl stared at him with despairing and pleading eyes.

"No," Seiras said coldly, "I can't help you."

"Why not?! Aren't space marines the greatest warriors in the galaxy?! Aren't they supposed to protect humanity? That's what all the stories say...are they not true?" she asked.

The young woman was very well-spoken much to his curiosity. She must have been a noble's daughter or some high-society person once. Her Gothic was high, proper, and well enunciated.

As he stared at her for a moment, Seiras had a flash of Daniella's childhood appearance enter his thoughts.

The woman's words echoed in his mind. Seiras shook his head, _'I saved Daniella...and all it did was drive her into a life of misery and heresy that ended with me killing her. It's not merciful or charitable to help people like this...they're already doomed.'_

"Well?!" she demanded after a long moment of silence.

"What do you expect me to do? Kill every xenos and evil person here by myself? I don't even have my power armour anymore. I'm in no position to do that. Even if I could, that doesn't help your situation. There are bad people everywhere that prey on the weak. If I could kill them all, the galaxy would be empty," Seiras replied.

She frowned, "But...I...what are we supposed to do then? Just give up? Just suffer?"

"I can't answer that question for you. It's something each man and woman must figure out for themselves. I'm not a hero, I'm not an angel, and I'm not someone you should be placing false hope in. Only you can help yourself," Seiras said almost cruelly to her.

Many people overheard his words, which were likely to spread across the entire chamber within the hour.

The teenager couldn't find the words to continue speaking as she looked down with a depressed face. She immediately ran away with shameful tear-filled eyes. Seiras simply kept walking afterwards.

 _'These people look at me like I'm some type of salvation. That's what the wych wants...she wants to get their hopes up so that they can suffer when or if I die. At least this'll spare them some heartache in the long run,'_ Seiras mentally justified his actions.

He continued walking for a few minutes until he reached the very edge of the massive chamber. He placed his back against two walls and sat a moment later. A couple of other slaves were attempting to spy on him, but he easily detected their presences.

Seiras sighed to himself as he felt the collar around his neck. The spikes were lodged deeply into his skin and caused a constant slow-burning pain. To a regular human or even an Eldar it likely would have been unbearably agonizing. Thankfully, he was highly resistant to pain for some reason...but even still he could recognize the constant burn it brought. The haemonculus was more than a little surprised by his tolerance to the collar. He had no idea if it was his own will as a librarian or another reason entirely that the collar wasn't as effective on him. He pushed those thoughts aside as he felt around the device for some type of lock.

 _'I wonder if I can take this collar off with my Betcher's glands? It would be risky, and I would definitely burn myself, but I could potentially remove it. Although it might have some type of failsafe I'm not aware of. I should probably try to figure out how it works before I make any rash decisions. I'll only have one chance to break out, so it's probably best I lull them into a false sense of security before doing so. Not to mention, I need to plan an escape route and figure out all the variables first. If I can stay alive for a while, I can pull this off,'_ Seiras contemplated as he sat in silence.

He spent nearly an hour in solitude, or what he assumed was an hour before a group of people showed up. They were all holding makeshift blunt "weapons" if one could call them that. They looked like hive gangsters judging by the large amount of tattoos and ridiculous outfits they each possessed.

Seiras watched them approach with disbelief, _'This better not be what I think it is...'_

"So...this is the big bad space marine huh? Everyone's been talking about you. Gotta be honest, I didn't think they actually existed," one of the men said condescendingly. He was quite large and burly and looked like he was easily more than a match for any of the people in the slave chamber.

He looked larger and better fed than the others which led Seiras to immediately assume that he and his fellow gang members were taking things from everyone else _. 'This slave pen reminds me of a lawless prison colony...I wonder why the Dark Eldar just let people fester in here? They're like livestock waiting to be harvested,'_ Seiras thought briefly as the gang members gathered around him.

There was roughly twenty or so of them. Most of them were male, but about a third were actually female much to his astonishment. Many had strange coloured hair and thuggish appearances. The entire gang looked as rugged, mean, and tough as one could expect hive thugs to be. To an Astartes, they were a complete joke however. Especially considering that Seiras had killed them by the thousands not too long ago.

"What do you want?" Seiras asked callously as he stood up. He had a hate-filled glare in his eyes as he looked over the thugs. He had a strong hatred for people like them. He dwarfed the mortal humans and was much larger than they were expecting. Several looked a bit hesitant as Seiras took a step forward.

"Well ya see...the masters and I have a deal here. We're what's called overseers. We help keep the slaves in line, and they don't torture us...as badly. We also get free reign to take anything we want and rape all the slave girls here. The masters actually like it when we breed. More slaves and all," their leader boasted with a sickening laugh. Several of the others joined in with him.

Seiras' eyes radiated malice as he took another step closer towards their leader, "Is that right? So, what did you hope to accomplish by coming over here?"

"Me and the gang here just came by to give you a little friendly warning to stay out of our affairs. We make sure to express our authority over all the new people that come in to this place. We do a little work for the masters and we get our perks. You understand? I don't need some supposed Space Marine like you thinkin he's going to come in here and ruin my setup. You get me?! So, here's a little friendly warning to mind your own business. It'd be a shame if we had to break your legs. I don't care how big you are, because I know you ain't no space marine!" he threatened.

"You're clearly the least intelligent man I've ever met. You seriously want to pick a fight with an Astartes while wielding pipes and clubs?" Seiras said as he cracked a fist.

Another one of the gangsters laughed at him, "Whatcha gonna do big guy? There's 22 of us and one of you. You don't even have any weapons. I doubt you're even a Space Marine either. They're just imperial propaganda anyway. We ought to beat your ass just for saying some stupid shit like that!"

Before the man could even figure out what had happened, Seiras charged him. He punched the cocky man as hard as he could in the face causing his entire skull to cave in and his body to go flying away. This undoubtedly killed the man immediately as skull fragments imploded into his brain.

The others all took their cue to attack but were helplessly weak and slow against the superhuman Astartes as he easily dodged, blocked, and murdered most them with simple blunt trauma. Full force punches from the librarian were literally sending some of them flying as Seiras charged through the crowd of attackers. He didn't hesitate to hold back any of his strength or rage as he literally ripped these mortal humans apart limb by limb or beat them into a shattered pulp of flesh. All of his anger over the recent events was fully unleashed on these unsuspecting people. When it became apparent that Seiras was way too strong for them, several tried to flee. Each one that tried to escape was swiftly knocked to the ground. Seiras wasted no time crippling the downed gangsters by stomping on their limbs. Once all of the fleeing thugs were immobilized, he proceeded to swiftly stomp on each downed person's head. Their crushed heads exploded like melons causing brains and skull fragments to splatter everywhere. Blood, guts, limbs, and gore soon decorated the entire area as the agonizing screams of Seiras' victims filled the slave chamber.

Seiras' speed despite his large size was horrifying to these gangsters as they could do nothing to fight him or even flee. One of the remaining female gangsters attempted to stab him with some type of long makeshift shiv, but the blade did almost no damage as it lightly punctured his skin and stopped at his Black Carapace. Although it drew blood, the wound immediately began to coagulate. The woman looked horrified as Seiras grabbed her by her arm and ripped it off a moment later. With furious hatred, the Astartes began to bludgeon her repeatedly with it causing the limb to snap in half from the sheer force of his swings. The horrific trauma behind these hits had turned her body into a mangled and twisted heap of flesh and bone. Seiras only stopped, when he noticed the gang leader attempting to run away. He was the only survivor left. During the entire brawl, the burly man had been hiding in the back behind his cohorts. He was now running as fast as he could to escape the scene of the massacre.

That made Seiras want to kill him even more now as he detested cowards. The man had a considerable head start, but there was no hope of escape as Seiras charged after him at full speed. The librarian quickly caught the man and grabbed the back of his head. The man was powerless as Seiras pushed him as hard as he could the other direction. This forced the man to go flying into the nearby wall and collapsing onto the ground a moment later.

By this time most of the slave chamber was aware of what was happening and were trying to watch from a safe distance. Ignoring them, Seiras kicked the man's bleeding body over.

The gang leader looked up at him with pleading eyes, "Please don't kill me! I'm sorry my lord! I was wrong...yeah, you're a space marine! I never doubted! You can have anything you want! Just please don't' kill me!"

"You're a pathetic coward...die with some dignity you hive sewer rat!" Seiras growled.

"P-p-please! I'm sorry! I didn't have a choice! The masters made me!" he repeated.

Seiras found his begging disgusting and immediately proceeded to stomp on the man's leg. The force behind it easily snapped the man's tibia and fibula bones into pieces. He screamed in torment as the Astartes put his full weight on the broken limb.

"Sorry? You were boasting about raping people in here and had the audacity to pick a fight with an Astartes! Filth like you deserves to be tortured in a xenos hellhole like this," Seiras said darkly as he stomped on the man's ankle now causing another sickening snap. A blood curdling howl filled the chamber as Seiras pressed his foot harder.

"No! Stop! PLEASE! Emperor protect me!" the man pleaded helplessly.

"You have done nothing to earn his protection...you're a weak coward and a parasite to humanity! You don't deserve to call yourself human! The Emperor shows no mercy or favor to worthless, weak excuses of human life such as you!" Seiras shouted heartlessly as he stomped on his other leg's knee.

"ARRGHHHH!" the man cried in horrible pain as he began to weep pathetically.

The scene was utterly horrifying to the slaves that were now gathering around to watch. Seiras walked around and then stomped on the man's arm breaking it in a similar fashion.

By this point the man was in shock and was twitching around wailing in agony. He mumbled incoherent pleas for mercy, but they were completely ignored as Seiras picked him up by the throat and tossed him into a nearby pillar. The fresh impact against his broken limbs brought the man pain that few could understand.

Seiras then pulled the shiv out of his side as he walked over to the mangled body of the gang leader.

The man was crying and convulsing as he began to cough up blood. No doubt the blunt trauma from the throw impact had caused heavy internal bleeding. Seiras knelt down and cut the man's shirt off with the shiv a moment later. Afterwards, he lifted him up and shallowly jabbed the shiv into the back of the man's neck.

"You brought this on yourself..." Seiras said darkly as he began to flay the blade.

The gang leader made an indistinguishable shriek that echoed throughout the slave pens again as Seiras began to carve his skin off. To the slaves it was one of the most horrifying things they had ever seen...which was saying something considering they were in Commorragh. Nobody dared to make a sound or move as they watched the Astartes literally flay the man alive.

This continued until the man eventually died from blood loss. His entire body looked like a human dissection by the time he was dead. After the man died, Seiras simply impaled his corpse against the pillar and took the flayed skin as he walked away. He moved over towards a wall corner with some heavy concealment behind several pillars. He only stopped when he knew the slaves couldn't see him.

Once he was out of their line of sight and in a dark corner, he began to eat the flesh of the man he had just flayed. He didn't do it for any barbaric reason, but Astartes were able to gain the genetic memories of the dead if they ate their flesh. This was due to their Omophagea organ.

Seiras didn't do this very often as it was considered horrific to many, but it was very useful in learning information. His grotesque murdering and torture of the gangsters in sight of the slaves would also serve to send a message to the Dark Eldar when they found out. It would make them think that he did not care about these slaves and spare them in the long run. While it was certainly cruel and horrifying, Seiras knew that his actions were necessary. He also felt little remorse for slaughtering the gangsters as they were likely the 'bad men' that the teenager had referred to earlier.

As he ate the man's skin, Seiras began to focus and see flashes of the human's past through genetic memory. The gang leader had apparently been in Commorragh for over a decade and suffered greatly at the hands of the Dark Eldar. What was good though, was Seiras got a larger understanding of the layout of the Kabal spire and the various slave chambers. The one he was in was only one of a dozen, and slaves almost never transferred to a new one unless the Dark Eldar were trying to subject them to something like rape or isolation.

As he finished his "meal" Seiras leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. He vividly mapped out the locations in his mind of areas he would and could go and made notes of where the worst places were. The overseer had apparently seen a foundry once, which was filled with vehicles and ships. Unfortunately, it was heavily guarded by scourges...winged dark eldar kabalites. Seiras also learned that this particular slave chamber was one of the bordering slave chambers to the Wych Cult's chamber and their arena.

This in-depth learning process went on for hours presumably as Seiras began to sleep in his usual half-awake state. Another interesting thing he learned during this time was just how horrific Melisara the haemonculus was. The overseer gang leader had apparently seen her turn a human inside out and kept them alive in that state before.

 _'I cannot let that thing near me...she's the biggest threat to my escape,'_ Seiras noted as he thought about the haemonculus.

His rest was eventually disturbed by the sound of people screaming. Though it was not in immediate range, he quickly peered from his dark corner and spotted a host of Dark Eldar walking through the chamber. He remained in his location, and quietly observed them. To his utter horror, the haemonculus was there as well as an escort of wracks and several grotesques. They came in to drag away a number of unfortunate people. Seiras watched with disgust as the horrendous beings randomly selected slaves without prejudice.

The Haemonculus Melisara was levitating around the chamber with gleeful malevolence as the people begged not to be taken away. Her dark and evil eyes lit up with a joyous expression when she came upon the scene of Seiras' massacre.

"What have we here?!" Melisara said eagerly in Gothic as she floated over towards the impaled and skinned corpse of the former overseer.

"All of the overseers appear to be dead, Melisara," one of the wracks commented as he approached to her flank.

"Yes, I just found them all right here. What do you make of this?" she asked the nearby wrack.

His face was covered in some type of horrendous mask, but he tilted his head as an approving response followed, "Whoever killed these slaves wanted them to suffer first."

"Quite a beautiful sight. Internal organs, bone fragments, blood, and severed limbs paint a wonderful picture here. Judging by the blood splatters and the overall blunt trauma and force inflicted to their wounds, I have no doubts that this was caused by that space marine we captured," Melisara followed up with a wicked laugh.

"This slave's skin appears to be missing. Half of his flesh was flayed, and I don't see it anywhere in this area," the wrack noted.

Melisara placed one of her hands to her chin, "Hmm…that's interesting. Let me turn on his tracker and find him."

A moment later, Seiras felt a vibration around his neck as his collar began to broadcast some type of signal. His eyes widened seriously, _'This thing doubles as a tracker? Damn…'_

It didn't take long for the haemonculus and a few of her escorts to reach Seiras' somewhat hidden location. As she came into his view, he mustered a stoic and calm demeanor.

"Ah, there you are, space marine!" Melisara announced almost happily.

Seiras passively glared at the creature as she stopped levitating and landed on her feet next to him. The haemonculus quietly observed his appearance for a brief moment before chuckling, "Very nice work on the slaves. While it is a bit novice, I have to say that I admired it nonetheless."

"Are you here to torture me?" Seiras asked as he ignored her comment.

The haemonculus shook her head, "Of course not. You're technically property of the Cult of Eternal Night. I just wanted to come by and show my appreciation for a fellow artist."

"Fellow artist?" Seiras said uncertainly.

"Oh, but of course! I really admire the way you tortured the overseers. Their leader had 27 fractures in his body across both legs, an arm, and even his sternum. Multiple ribs were shattered into his body, and judging by the bloodstains, he was hemorrhaging both internally and out as you flayed him alive. Beautiful…simply beautiful. Sadly, your blunt trauma and knifework were a bit sloppy. He died far sooner than he could have. Nevertheless, I approve of your novice work. I didn't expect to encounter a monkeigh that shared my appreciation for inflicting pain," Melisara rambled in approval.

' _What?! She's admiring that gore I created?'_ Seiras thought disbelievingly.

"What is to become of me?" Seiras decided to press his luck and ask.

Melisara looked at him with a bit of amusement, "You're owned by the Hekatarii in the Cult of Eternal Night. A high value slave like you will undoubtedly be subjected to the arenas."

"When will that happen?" he followed.

The haemonculus shrugged, "Soon, I'd imagine. They have to make a huge event out of it for everyone to come see. Probably one or two of your Terran days."

Seiras said nothing in response as he quietly stared at the haemonculus with great discomfort.

"What chapter are you from, Monkeigh?" Melisara asked him with curious amusement.

The librarian found very strange for a Dark Eldar to be asking him this type of question…especially a haemonculus.

"Does it really matter?" he countered.

"Well, the former space marines we captured and got to dissect were all Imperial Fists. I was curious to know so that I can better catalogue you in my collection later," Melisara replied as she levitated around him like a shark.

' _If she's dissected Astartes, then she knows about how our organs probably work…but if it was only Imperial Fists then I am fortunate. They don't have Betcher's Glands…so she won't be under the impression I do. I definitely need to save them for my escape. If they find out about it, they'll remove my Betcher's glands,'_ Seiras thought to himself.

"I'm waiting for your answer, human…what chapter are you from?" Melisara asked dangerously.

"The Blood Ravens," he decided to tell the truth. Part of him did this so that he could gauge how much this haemonculus knew about his chapter.

The black-haired alien tilted her head in fascination, "I'll have to do some research on them. I'm not too familiar with that one."

 _'At least she doesn't know anything about the Blood Ravens…for now,'_ Seiras thought relieved.

"How did you manage to capture Imperial Fists?" Seiras decided to test his luck and ask.

"Oh, this was thousands of years back. By your calendar it was M37.542 I believe. It was quite amazing really…though I wish I could have captured one of those Custodes," Melisara remarked with eager recollection.

Seiras' eyes widened in horror, "Capture a Custodes?! Where would you have seen an Adeptus Custodes?"

"Why on Holy Terra of course…where else? I'll relay the whole story to you later if you're still alive. Farewell, space marine. I'll be watching your battle in the arena. Oh and by the way...welcome to Commorragh," the haemonculus responded with a creepily upbeat tone.

She then departed with her host leaving Seiras alone in his corner. He reflected in silence on the implications of what she just said, _'That haemonculus has been to Terra?! That's impossible…a Dark Eldar raiding party would stand no chance against the fortifications of Terra. How in the warp could she have possibly been there?! Maybe she's lying…she has to be!'_

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Alright guys, that's a wrap for chapter 12. Hopefully, you've found the introduction of Commorragh to be interesting so far. Seiras is truly in for some rough treatment now that he's here. We got a firsthand look at some of the Dark Eldar characters we'll be seeing. Just to clarify though, Nelfaera is not a blank. There was a blank on the Archon's ravager though…more on that later. Stay tuned for the next chapter where we get to meet more of the wyches.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: The Cult of Eternal Night**

 **Seiras, Commorragh**

After his encounter with the creepy haemonculus Melisara, Seiras tried to get some more rest. He found himself struggling to get the unsettling aftermath of the conversation out of his mind, but unfortunately it only seemed to reinforce his cautious concern about the dangers of the resident haemonculus. His rest was eventually disturbed an indeterminate amount of time later by the sounds of footsteps. He immediately opened his eyes and saw a pack of wyches led by none other than Renfaeda. Her cousin Nelfaera was also with her as well as another familiar looking wych.

Seiras quickly recognized her as the wych he nearly killed before getting captured. He remembered the others mentioning her name was Aelendriel. She had long bluish-purple hair with a white streak in it. The white streak seemed to be a trademark of the cult as every wych had a white streak somewhere in their hair. Every wych he had seen so far also had some variation of bluish-green hair as well.

The ends of Aelendriel's long blue hair were coated with bright purple tips which made her stand out more. Her hair was fashioned into a partial hightail unsurprisingly. She was the most scantily clad of the bunch wearing little more than armored underwear and a midriff breastplate. Both legs had spiked shin guards and both arms had gauntlets that went up to her elbow.

For a very brief and absent-minded moment, Seiras thought of Nelfaera's words in which she claimed to be prettier than Aelendriel. While he was no expert on the matter, he thought Aelendriel had an unusual appeal about her demeanor. Seiras briefly wondered if she actually was attractive by alien standards. This horrible and disgusting thought evaporated a split second later as he remembered they were xenos filth. The succubus wych looked at Seiras and grinned at him when she saw that he recognized her. He immediately refocused his attention to the others as he examined their appearances as well.

The various wyches had a variety of appearances, but they all had a range of bluish green or bluish black hair. Aelendriel was the only one with purple in her hair. Renfaeda's raven blue hair wasn't unique out of the bunch, but she wore the most impressive armour, and was undoubtedly the leader. Considering Renfaeda and Aelendriel were succubi, Seiras wasn't surprised that they were uniquely adorned in comparison to the others. Nelfaera, despite not being a succubus claimed she was a Syren and that she led Renfaeda's Hekatrix bloodbrides. Looking at the group of prominent wyches following these three, Seiras immediately figured that they must be bloodbrides.

Seiras regretted letting his gaze linger on Nelfaera for a moment as she gave him a flexing, sexy pose. He scowled at her with revulsion which only caused her to grin wickedly.

The others noticed this brief, wordless interaction and eyed the Syren curiously. Renfaeda spoke with confusion, **"What are you doing, Nelfaera?"**

 **"Posing of course. The monkeigh thinks I'm sexy,"** she replied.

Aelendriel looked at Seiras and then at the Syren before shaking her head, **"That's very doubtful, Nelfaera. Space Marines are immune to sex appeal. I don't even think they breed. They don't care about anything except fighting and dying for their emperor. You won't get anywhere trying to toy with him like that. These brutes are only useful for slaughtering in the arenas to demoralize the other Monkeigh."**

 **"You should have seen the look he gave me when I interrogated him on the ship. He was admiring my beauty. I was also the first one he looked at when we walked in. What's that tell you?"** Nelfaera boasted.

 **"Actually, I was the first one he looked at...but it doesn't really matter. If he did care for such things, then I would have easily noticed it when I fought him. I'm better looking than you are anyways. You're delusional, Nelfaera,"** Aelendriel said proudly.

 **"You...better looking than me? Haha! You wish, Aelendriel. Every member in the Kabal of the Twilight Shadow knows me. They probably get off to vids of my arena fights."** Nelfaera laughed at the bluish purple haired wych.

 **"And yet which one of us is a Succubus again? You always seem to forget that I outrank you for a reason, Syren."** Aelendriel countered with a smug smirk.

The teal haired syren sent a nasty glare towards the succubus but chose not to respond.

" **You're not that popular with the upper echelon of the Kabal yet, Nelfaera. I think your biggest fans are all hellions and halfborn kabalites,"** Renfaeda cut in with a demoralizing smile.

" **So what? Fans are fans…aren't they? I technically have more than she does!"** she hissed back with a disapproving stare.

" **If you weren't trueborn, you'd probably be in a Hellion gang. You're as graceful as a thug…it's no wonder the lowborn filth likes you so much."** Aelendriel chuckled haughtily.

Nelfaera rolled her eyes and chose not to respond. She refocused the attention back on Seiras as she circled him briefly, **"He's covered in dried blood…looks like our space marine was the one that killed all of those monkeigh."**

 **"Speaking of the monkeigh, why isn't he in restraints? Did he break out of them?"** one of the hekatrix bloodbrides asked.

 **"I doubt he broke out of them. Even if he did, the cuffs are gone. I didn't see any sign of them in that giant mess he left out there,"** Nelfaera remarked.

 **"That incompetent sybarite probably just removed them like an idiot. I think I'm going to kill him later. Oh well, it's not like it matters if he's restrained or not,"** Renfaeda said with annoyance.

Seiras kept up his feigned ignorance to what they were saying as he attempted to make a confused face.

Finally, Renfaeda spoke in gothic to him. She had no accent and spoke the language much better than any Dark Eldar he had ever encountered, "Come with us, slave and don't try anything foolish."

' _She has a very distinctive voice…I can almost sense the authority behind it. I wonder how skilled Renfaeda is in combat? Could I even take her in a fight?'_ Seiras briefly contemplated.

While he knew he had a slight chance of being able to kill them, that wouldn't get him any closer to escaping. Without hesitation, Seiras obeyed as he stood up and approached them.

Renfaeda looked a bit surprised at Seiras' immediate obedience to her command. She eyed him curiously, "I didn't expect you to be so compliant. Aren't you a good slave?"

Seiras didn't say anything in response as he kept his gaze focused on Renfaeda for further instruction.

 **"I thought you said he was talkative and willful, cousin. He hasn't spoken one word since I've seen him,"** Renfaeda remarked as she glanced over at Nelfaera.

 **"He is! You just have to push the right buttons. Watch this,"** Nelfaera beamed.

"Do you want to know my name still? " the Syren asked Seiras in gothic. She gave him another sexy pose much to his distaste.

The librarian remained silent as he avoided eye contact with her. He was not going to give this petty wych any satisfaction if he could avoid it.

"I'll tell you my name if you tell me yours," she said in a creepy flirtatious way. It literally made his insides shudder.

Refusing to fall for her bait, Seiras kept up his silence. He briefly glanced over to see her expression and that of the other wyches. They seemed somewhat intrigued by the situation much to his horror.

Seiras could see Nelfaera's joyous face upon briefly making eye contact with her. She beamed with delight, "Was it you that skinned that slave out there? It was rather good for a monkeigh...though you carved too deeply. He bled out long before you removed all the skin. Still, it really terrified all the other slaves in here! They usually only get that scared when the haemonculus shows up."

 _'Did she just compliment me for butchering those people? First the haemonculus, and now these wyches? I can't tell if they're being serious or if this is all a huge joke to them.'_ Seiras thought as he kept his blank expression.

It didn't stay blank long as Nelfaera got closer to him and stared at him in a very strange way. Something about the look caused him great discomfort. Before long, the Blood Raven couldn't help but stare in disgust at Nelfaera's expression. She somehow knew exactly how to get under his skin from a mere stare.

"I want your name...don't make me get the haemonculus to extract your memories. Actually...never mind, that's a good idea. She'll probably want to see this art display you left out here anyways," Nelfaera cackled.

 _'She already has. Wait a minute…I wonder how much information I could gain if I ate the haemonculus' brain? My Omophagea could easily break down any potential xenos prions in her nervous tissue…though I am curious what its composition even is? If it is possible, I wonder what kind of genetic memories I could gain? Melisara is easily thousands of years old.'_ Seiras thought to himself in a slight revelation.

His distracted thoughts caused the wyches to eye him curiously. One of the unnamed wyches cocked her head, **"You weren't lying, Nelfaera...this one is odd. He looks like you just gave him an idea."**

 **"I think he knows what you're trying to do. Space marines aren't usually this...clever. Most of the ones I've seen are willfully defiant and easy to manipulate. He's extremely calm, patient, and obedient. That's the complete opposite of how these overgrown brutes typically react when captured. He was like this when I first saw him too. He's very observant and he recognizes all of us. He also seems somewhat relaxed like he's not going to attack. How peculiar. I would advise caution...this is likely all an elaborate act to lower our guards,"** Renfaeda said as she looked at Seiras cautiously.

 **"Do you see what I mean now, Faeda? He seems a bit off for a monkeigh. What do you make of it?"** Nelfaera crossed her arms with a curious expression.

Renfaeda nodded her head, **"You were certainly right, Nelfaera. He looks like he's learning about us and waiting for an opportunity to attack. Regular space marines are all direct and predictable. I certainly wouldn't lower my guard around this one."**

 **"He's unarmed and unarmoured...you still think he's dangerous?"** one of the bloodbrides asked Renfaeda.

 **"Without a doubt...if he grabs you, then you can expect to end up like those monkeigh corpses in here. But enough of this, let's get moving. Bloodbrides, follow behind the monkeigh and make sure he doesn't try anything."** the raven haired succubus ordered.

 **"Finally!** **I tire of the smell in here, so let's go already!"** Aelendriel complained.

"Come slave," Renfaeda waved as the wyches guided Seiras away. He had the two Succubi and the Syren in front of him with the rest of the hekatrix bloodbrides following behind. Several had impaler spears and splinter pistols pointed at his back as he followed a body's length behind the front three. Nelfaera made sure to be directly in front of him much to his annoyance.

 **"I'm surprised he killed his own kind in here. The slaves look terrified. That's not what I was expecting him to do,"** Renfaeda admitted as the wych pack passed by the mutilated corpses and escorted Seiras out of the chamber.

 **"You have to admit though...it is rather effective. They usually only get this scared when Melisara comes down here. I would have loved to have seen him do it,"** one of the bloodbrides noted as she pointed at the impaled gang leader's skinned corpse.

Many of the slaves cowered in absolute terror as they saw Seiras and the Hekatarii escort with him. Seiras briefly glanced into the crowd and noticed the same teenage girl from earlier. She shrunk under his gaze as if he was a monster.

 _'I'm not like them...I shouldn't feel sympathy for them,'_ Seiras told himself as he looked away with a feigned carelessness.

The wyches continued to guide Seiras out of the chamber as they got into conversations with one another about various uninteresting things. Seiras only tuned back in when her heard them speaking about him.

 **"I'm telling you, Faeda. This one's smart for a monkeigh. When I get him to talk, you'll see what I mean. He knows a lot about Aeldari,"** Nelfaera broke the brief silence.

' _She thinks I'm smart? Didn't that xenos fiend call me stupid multiple times during our talk?'_ Seiras thought bewildered.

" **How so?"** Renfaeda tilted her head back interested.

Before Nelfaera could answer, Aelendriel interrupted her, **"I honestly could care less. He's a Deathwatch Marine, Nelfaera. They know more about the Aeldari and Drukhari than most of their kind because they specialize in killing us. There's nothing unique about his knowledge."**

" **You really think so?"** Nelfaera said doubtfully.

Aelendriel nodded, **"Without a doubt. I think you're just grasping at air here."**

The teal haired syren rolled her eyes before changing the subject, **"Are you excited for your rematch, Aelendriel?"**

The blue and purple haired Succubus sent a sour and smug look Nelfaera's way, **"I'm going to eviscerate him! He embarrassed me in front of Faelan! The archon and all of his incubi saw the fight! Not only that, but the monkeigh killed all of my bloodbrides!"**

 **"That's unfortunate for you, Aelendriel...sorry to steal your spotlight during the raid,"** Nelfaera chuckled with an obvious lack of remorse.

 **"You cheap shot him AFTER I had already weakened him! Not only that, but I had to deal with his psychic powers! You would have died had you been in my position!"** Aelendriel protested.

" **I find it strange he was able to use psychic powers that close to Faelan. Did my brother not have his null with him?"** Renfaeda interrupted.

Aelendriel nodded, **"Oh his pet was there…but it didn't really seem to be effective at stopping the space marine's powers. That's part of what caught a lot of my bloodbrides off guard. Taeri was electrocuted to death by lightning."**

" **By the way, Aelendriel, you never did thank me for saving your life. I guess that means you owe me, doesn't it?"** Nelfaera said condescendingly.

Aelendriel scowled at Nelfaera with obvious hatred, **"Don't test me you petulant thug. I owe you nothing. Keep your pretentious nonsense to yourself, Syren!"**

 **"It's a shame my exalted cousin Faelan had to see you fail. He always did favor me though. I'm glad I could keep it that way,"** Nelfaera kept goading her.

 **"Shut your mouth! Faelan will recognize my perfection sooner or later,"** Aelendriel said with evident fury.

" **Not with that Lhamaean skank following him around everywhere…"** one of the bloodbrides muttered loud enough for everyone to hear.

This caused Nelfaera to start laughing and Aelendriel to get angry. The succubus shook her head in disgust, **"I hate** _ **her**_ **! What's Faelan even see in some fake, frilly little slut like that anyway? She's not even pretty, and I can see through her pathetic attempts at manipulation from a planet away."**

Nelfaera shrugged, **"She's probably really good at sucking cock. If I had one, I'd let her suck mine. She definitely has the mouth for it. I can see the appeal in breeding with her."**

 **"I'd hate to break it to you Aelendriel, but you might as well give up on Faelan. You'd have a better chance at impressing Vect, because I highly doubt he's ever going to fancy you. Ever since Faelan became Archon, the only female he trusts is that stupid concubine of his. Trust me, I hate her too. She's got Faelan convinced that I'm trying to kill him,"** Renfaeda cut in.

 **"Well, Aelendriel, I guess you could always find a suitor among the nobility or just settle for one of the male wyches like everyone else does..."** one of the bloodbrides spoke up.

Aelendriel jerked her head back and sent her an icy glare, **"I'm NOT like everyone else!"**

 **"O-of course mistress,"** the bloodbride replied a bit nervously.

 **"Well if you get desperate, there's always monkeigh. That seems more appropriate for you anyway,"** Nelfaera laughed. None of the other bloodbrides looked like they had the courage to join in laughing with her, but a few had slight smirks.

Nelfaera was directly in front of Seiras, and couldn't see the look on his face, but he was appalled she would even think of something so disgusting.

He briefly glanced over to see Aelendriel's reaction and was surprised to see that she was looking at him.

Seiras mustered a look of confusion on his face in order to conceal his previous expression a moment ago. Part of him was worried that she saw his reaction. It wouldn't take her long to figure out he could understand them if she did.

Luckily that didn't appear to be the case as she looked forward again shaking her head, **"I'd sooner join a Craftworld...monkeigh are so disgusting and completely unaesthetic."**

 **"True, but a lot more Drukhari have a monkeigh fetish than you might think. Besides, they're not all hideous. I've seen a few decent ones,"** Nelfaera replied.

Aelendriel made a sour face, **"You would be into fucking animals, wouldn't you? Is it the body hair or the repugnant smell that turns you on?"**

 **"Oh, I've never tried it personally. I'm not really into males that are weaker than me. Though there were a couple times I thought about doing it out of boredom. I suppose I wouldn't be opposed if I found one I liked…though most would probably like it too much,"** Nelfaera replied.

 **"What about him then? You keep flaunting yourself in front of him,"** Aelendriel asked as she looked back at Seiras.

Nelfaera looked at her amused, **"That would be a much better option for you considering your inability to get laid."**

" **What?! I have no problems in that area! I partake in many carnal delights that would make you jealous! I simply aspire to have the absolute best because I am the best!"** Aelendriel countered.

" **The best who got her ass kicked by a monkeigh,"** Renfaeda interrupted.

" **Renfaeda! I…It wasn't like that! He has psychic powers, I couldn't exactly defeat him with combat skills. You've fought against, psykers, surely you understand how it was!"** Aelendriel tried to defend herself to the queen succubus.

" **Of course, I understand, Aelendriel…that's why I'm letting you fight him in the arena,"** Renfaeda said with a grin.

" **Well if he could beat you in a fight, then I think he qualifies as admirable at least. Besides, he's not hideous. A bit burly for my tastes, but I'd definitely go for it in your position…especially considering your lack of viable options,"** Nelfaera remarked.

 **"You're disgusting, Nelfaera!"** Aelendriel hissed as she rolled her eyes.

 **"Not really. I'm surprised a picky prude like you became a succubus if you think that's disgusting. I mean even my beloved cousin Faelan gets blowjobs from Monkeigh slave girls whenever his concubine Maeralya isn't around. Sometimes they incorporate a few in their mating sessions just for the hell of it."** Nelfaera said maliciously.

 **"WHAT?!"** Aelendriel shrieked.

 **"Seriously?"** another one of the bloodbrides gawked.

Renfaeda glanced back and sighed, **"Yeah, he does. Faelan isn't worried about monkeigh girls trying to kill him or manipulate him. They make easy and safe sex slaves for a paranoid archon, and for some reason that courtesan whore is into it too. I know for a fact she fancies Monkeigh girls. She likes to collect all the best-looking ones as her personal slaves. She calls it her living doll collection."**

 **"As if I didn't have enough of a reason to hate her! I will never understand why Faelan would rather mate with her and some animals over a succubus. I'm all for some exhibition, but that's deplorable! It's an insult to my beauty!"** Aelendriel said with disgust.

" **If you really want Faelan to like you, then get rid of Maeralya first. You didn't hear that from me though,"** Renfaeda said softly with a malicious giggle.

 _'So, she likes the Archon. I could possibly use that information to manipulate her later,'_ Seiras thought as he examined the Aelendriel's expression.

Her pink eyes shot back at him a split second later. It was almost as if she could sense his gaze. She didn't say anything, but she made it clear that she knew he was looking.

Aelendriel was staring at him now which was more than a little unsettling. Seiras ignored her as he glanced over at some of the bloodbrides who were now flanking him. One with a standard hightail of blue hair had an impaler pointed towards his side. The bloodbride wasn't that unique looking compared to the other unnamed wyches, but she had bright silver eyes which made her stand out a bit.

When she saw him look over, the wych held up her pistol and began to lick it in front of him. She maintained eye contact the entire time while doing it too.

 _'What in the warp is she doing?'_ Seiras thought bewildered.

She moved closer towards him a moment later and stared maliciously. The wych was right next to him now. Seiras had no idea what type of emotion she was expressing. She licked her lips a moment later and gave him a taunting come and get it gesture. Seiras stared blankly at her as she then followed up by blowing a kiss.

He did not understand what the display was supposed to mean, but he quickly figured she must have been trying to mess with him. Dark Eldar were notorious for being masters of manipulation. She was very likely testing whether or not Seiras had any kind of attraction to them. He understood why too. It was an easy way to manipulate weak-willed males. They were looking for any type of mental weakness in the Astartes, and he knew it.

 **"Why are you trying to provoke the monkeigh, Kaerith?"** Aelendriel said with amusement.

 **"He was looking at me, I was just messing with him,"** the silver-eyed bloodbride now identified as Kaerith responded.

 **"Space marines are immune to that kind of thing...so don't bother trying to toy with him like that,"** Aelendriel replied.

 **"I don't know what she's talking about...the monkeigh thinks I'm attractive. Are you sure you're not just jealous, Aelendriel? Maybe he thinks Kaerith is attractive too,"** Nelfaera added with a petty smugness.

" **There's nothing to be envious of, fool! I have yet to see him react to you in any way other than disgust. I think you're making all of this up to just piss me off,"** Aelendriel shook her head.

" **Why would it upset you if it doesn't concern you?"** Nelfaera countered with a smug expression.

Aelendriel leered at the Syren hatefully, **"Don't project your fetishes onto me, Nelfaera. It isn't true, so stop wasting everyone's time with your baseless assumptions!"**

 _'For the love of the Emperor, I cannot show any emotion to their bizarre alien seduction techniques. If I maintain indifference, they'll stop testing me,'_ Seiras told himself.

 **"Well there's only one way to know for sure. We should test it to see how he reacts to something more personal. Kaerith, kiss him for us since you seem to like him."** Nelfaera smirked.

 **"What?!"** Kaerith gawked with disbelief.

Nelfaera smiled wickedly, **"You heard me...test the waters. I'm curious to see what he does."**

 **"Seriously?"** she said with a doubtful expression.

 **"Do it so I can prove Aelendriel wrong again,"** Nelfaera beamed.

 **"Why don't you do it, Nelfaera? I mean if he is as enamored with you as you say he is, then show us,"** Aelendriel countered.

" **I'm not trying to reward him here. Besides, Kaerith looks like the type who'd be into it,"** she countered with an arrogant smile.

" **Fine then. Do what she says, Kaerith,"** Aelendriel commanded.

The wych in question looked horrified now as all of the surrounding wyches snickered at her with joyous amusement. They had no remorse or empathy for their fellow bloodbride's unfortunate situation.

" **I…I don't want to,"** Kaerith found the courage to say.

" **I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you, Kaerith…surely you didn't just say no, right?"** Nelfaera said dangerously.

The bloodbride reluctantly swallowed her pride and shook her head, **"Of course not, Nelfaera. I'll do it if that's what you want."**

' _These bloodbrides seem to fear Nelfaera more than Aelendriel even though she's a lower rank…I've never seen an Eldar back down like a traumatized child. Nelfaera must be truly terrible for them to fear her like that,'_ Seiras thought curiously.

" **Don't act like you didn't want to anyways, Kaerith. I saw that look you were giving him,"** Nelfaera laughed.

 **"Can we test this for a moment, Renfaeda?"** Aelendriel asked the succubus queen. Renfaeda briefly stopped and glanced back at the other wyches with a bored look.

The raven haired succubus nodded, **"Fine, but make it quick. Also, don't blame me if he loses his mind and tries to kill you."**

 _'What the hell is happening right now?!'_ Seiras thought horrified.

"Space marine, we have a surprise for you." Aelendriel spoke up in gothic.

He pretended not to hear her as he focused his gaze forward. A moment later he felt himself being stopped as all the wyches surrounded him and pointed weapons into his skin. An electrowhip immediately lashed across his bare back a moment later causing a surge of pain to cover his body.

"Kneel, monkeigh!" Aelendriel ordered in Gothic as she and the others curiously watched his reaction.

Reluctantly, Seiras did as he was told. Kaerith wasted no time as she leaned over and got uncomfortably close to his face. She looked a bit hesitant and nervous to get closer, but ultimately had no other option.

Seiras looked over at Renfaeda and wondered how she was reacting to the situation. She was watching with a silent interest at his reaction.

A second later, he felt cold lips press against his. They tasted very strange. It had some type of narcotic aroma and a bizarre alien taste that Seiras couldn't recognize. Whatever it was, he did not enjoy it.

" **Is that it, Kaerith? I don't even see tongue action. You call that a kiss?"** Nelfaera said wickedly.

Kaerith dug her sharp nails into his skin drawing blood from the back of his head. A moment later she bit his lip causing it to bleed heavily. The savage and unholy act only intensified as he felt her tongue licking up the blood from his lip and attempting to force its way into his mouth.

This did not last long before Seiras attempted to resist. He tried standing up but was forced back down when a multitude of weapons lightly pierced his flesh.

"Don't move, Monkeigh!" Aelendriel announced seriously.

The librarian knew he could have overpowered them, but he wasn't in any position to fight wyches on all sides. He reluctantly endured the rest of the bloody kiss as Kaerith finally forced her tongue into his mouth.

The moment it entered, he felt violated as it went deep towards his throat. Her alien tongue was longer than he was expecting. He briefly felt his Betcher's glands tense up and his eyes went wide, _'Hold it in, Seiras...if they find out I have acid glands in my mouth, it'll ruin my escape. Hold it back. Damn it, what is she doing with her tongue?'_

"I've seen enough of this...let's go," Renfaeda said in gothic as she finally stopped them much to Seiras' relief.

All of the wyches backed off upon hearing her words. Before Kaerith could even back up herself, Seiras hatefully pushed her off of him with extreme prejudice. She went flying a considerable distance back before slamming into a nearby wall and narrowly missing a spike on it. The others laughed as she leapt to her feet a second later wiping her mouth in disgust.

If it wasn't for his long-term escape plans, Seiras would have gone berserk and killed anything he could before dying. It took considerable willpower for him to mentally endure what just happened.

 **"How was it, Kaerith? You really seemed to like that. I guess we should all call you Monkeigh Lover now haha,"** Aelendriel laughed.

 **"I did not enjoy it!"** the bloodbride protested immediately.

' _I can't go through this again...first chaos cultists and now xenos?! I have to get out of this place! I can't stay here!'_ Seiras thought furiously.

" **Maybe she's attracted to him?! Hahaha, she went in deep on that kiss too."** Nelfaera laughed at Kaerith causing the silver-eyed bloodbride to look at her confused.

The wych looked down with utter embarrassment and a bit of anger, **"You're all making assumptions here. I'm just doing what I was told!"**

" **Nobody told you to get all intimate with him. I was just joking when I said give him some tongue. You didn't even hesitate. I guess I was right...you do like him,"** Nelfaera giggled cruelly.

Kaerith bit her lip in anger, **"This isn't funny!"**

" **Really? Because I think it is. I never knew you were into monkeigh,"** Nelfaera countered.

" **I wasn't into him! He was just hating it so much that I enjoyed his suffering!"** Kaerith protested.

Nelfaera laughed, **"Sure...it's okay, Kaerith, I'm not judging you."**

" **Weren't you the one who said you thought he looked decent for a human? Let's see you do it then, Nelfaera!"** Kaerith countered with renewed bravery.

The teal haired Syren shook her head, **"Oh no, I don't think it would be very nice of me to steal your boyfriend a minute after you got him. I'm mean, but I'm not THAT mean."**

Kaerith sent a hate-filled glare towards Nelfaera but looked as if she didn't have the courage to retaliate further.

" **Nevertheless, it looks like you were wrong, Nelfaera. The monkeigh looks absolutely disgusted by it,"** Aelendriel said after she finally stopped laughing.

" **Maybe I was, but whatever. Anyways, like I said earlier there's deviants with monkeigh fetishes everywhere these days. At least I proved that much,"** Nelfaera giggled maliciously as she continued to ridicule Kaerith.

 **"Sorry I have to kill your monkeigh boyfriend, Kaerith. I'll let you keep his skin to wear if it'll make you feel better,"** Aelendriel laughed at the bloodbride again.

' _Aelendriel and Nelfaera seem to hate each other, but they both teamed up to ridicule their underling? What kind of sick psychology drives these inhuman fiends? They act like children, but they're way more intelligent than an adult human. Is this how the craftworlders would act if they didn't restrain their emotions?'_ Seiras wondered as he noticed Kaerith getting visibly upset now.

She endured several more jokes in silence as she simply lowered her head in acceptance. Seiras couldn't help but find the entire scene abhorrent and very strange.

' _They ordered her to defile me with a kiss, and then they make fun of her for it? This is petty bullying that I would expect from adolescents. These xenos are even more bizarre than Craftworlders. I don't even know what to make of this nightmarish place,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he tried to remain calm.

The rest of the walk was spent in relative silence minus the odd conversation here and there. Kaerith had kept her head down the entire time, and eventually the others got bored with making fun of her. Seiras tuned out most of their pointless banter as he silently stared at Renfaeda.

The main succubus glanced at Seiras and spoke to him for the first time in a while, "You'll be staying in the wych training grounds in a cage. You will be held there until your battle in the arenas…do you understand, monkeigh?"

Seiras nodded in acknowledgement at her. After entering the wych training grounds, Seiras looked around and spotted a host of young and bloodthirsty gladiatrixes staring intensely at the newest arrivals. Many looked excited and amazed when they realized Seiras was an Astartes.

The librarian was quickly guided to a display cage in the corner of the chamber, where a large gathering of Dark Eldar came up to stare at him as if he was some prize-winning animal.

After several minutes of being a circus event, the wyches all dispersed as well as the original escort that brought Seiras there.

As everyone went about their own business, Renfaeda remained behind and spoke to the librarian casually, "Space marine, I have a few questions for you, that I expect answers for."

He glanced at the Succubus queen and waited for her to speak. She smiled when she saw he was being receptive, "Why are you acting so passive?"

"How else should I act? I'm in no position to do anything else," Seiras replied bluntly.

Renfaeda nodded, "Yes, but you're far too calm about your situation. You do realize what's in store for you, right?"

"If you expect me to grovel and despair, then you clearly don't understand Astartes," Seiras replied sharply.

"Oh I understand you just fine…and I know the look of hope when I see it. Do you really think you're ever leaving Commorragh?" Renfaeda asked.

Seiras stared blankly at Renfaeda and remained stubbornly silent.

The succubus shook her head, "Your refusal to answer says all I need to know."

"Then I suppose I'm doomed," Seiras said half-heartedly as if it wasn't a big deal to him.

"Indeed you are, Seiras…" Renfaeda remarked with a wicked grin.

The librarian maintained the most indifferent face he could as he remained silent. Renfaeda shook her head, "Wondering how I know your name, I'll bet…aren't you?"

He refused to answer as he looked away carelessly. His mind however was racing over the possibilities of how she would know him.

"Faelan told me your name…he overhead the other space marines saying it as they tried to rescue you," Renfaeda explained.

"Who's that?" Seiras asked calmly.

"The Archon…my older twin brother Faelan. He was very impressed with your abilities. I'm not even joking either. I'll be looking forward to seeing how you fare against my wyches," Renfaeda beamed.

"You'll see soon enough, Eldar…" he said stoically.

The succubus was silent for a brief moment before speaking, "Renfaeda...you will refer to me as Lady Renfaeda or master. Is that understood?"

"Of course, master," Seiras replied carelessly.

"Is Renfaeda too difficult to pronounce?" she asked.

Seiras simply shrugged, "It's longer than master...why tell me anyways?"

"All slaves should know who they belong to. Nevertheless, farewell, Seiras..." the succubus spoke sadistically before leaving.

 _'Why did she tell me her name I wonder? Was she trying to get me to say it? That's awfully suspicious,'_ Seiras thought curiously.

 **Wych Cult Training Grounds, Many Hours Later**

Seiras had been chained up in a cage of the Wych Cult's training grounds for almost half a day now. Although it was difficult to see them, from his position, Seiras could watch the various wyches training endlessly to perfect their graceful death-dealing movements. Some were sparring, some were doing acrobatics, and others were managing their wargear.

His cage was isolated from all of the other ones, but oddly enough, he was less noticeable than he expected to be as they had him tucked away in some grotesque corner. Most of the wyches seemed to ignore his existence now, and from his location, he could watch them with subtlety. He almost couldn't believe at how careless they were in allowing him to do so. He couldn't tell if it was simply ignorance or blind arrogance. Whatever the reason, he was not about to pass up the chance to improve his chances of survival. Seiras spent this time in captivity stealthily memorizing the way the various wyches moved. Certain attacks with certain weapons had specific movements which broadcasted where their bodies were going to be. Using his perfect memory, he made sure to take in as much as he could during the long and boring isolation.

Eventually, his spying was interrupted when a familiar wych drug an archite glaive across the bars of his cage to catch his attention. He heard a feminine voice call his name, "Seiras."

He turned his head expecting it to be Renfaeda, but much to his surprise, it wasn't. The wych standing there was none other than Aelendriel the other succubus. A multitude of questions fluttered through his mind as he tried to make sense of how she knew also his name, why she didn't say anything to the others if she did know it, and why she would possibly choose to address him alone.

' _Maybe Renfaeda told her?'_ Seiras pondered on the most likely possibility.

"Wondering how I know your name?" she said quietly.

The most unusual thing about her being here, was the tone of her voice. She was trying to be quiet and inconspicuous. Seiras looked at her with silent curiosity. There was no telling what this was all about.

"Of course you are. The others were all too naïve to actually read the inscriptions on your armour. You monkeigh like to write your names on everything you own," she immediately explained.

"There's a lot of names on my armour," Seiras replied to her calmly.

"I got first pickings on your stuff whenever we captured you. There was only one name on that sword of yours and one on your shoulder plate. Both were the same. It was pretty obvious at that point. The halberd had a different name inscribed on the shaft...I'm guessing it didn't belong to you? Something else you had on you was this," Aelendriel briefly flashed the webway generator remote that Seiras always kept with him.

"Where did you get one of these?" she asked quietly making sure not to display it where her kin could see it.

"From a craftworlder," Seiras vaguely told the truth.

She scoffed at him, "Obviously...did you kill them for it? Do you even know what this is?"

"Xenos junk," Seiras shrugged as he feigned ignorance.

The succubus crossed her arms, "If it was junk, you wouldn't have kept it on your armour. Do you think me a fool? Only Harlequins and high ranking Craftworlders are allowed to carry ones like these. How did you come to possess this?"

"I don't even know what it is," Seiras lied.

She looked at him slyly, "It's a webway generator remote...and not just any kind, but the kind that gives one access to most of the webway. This one in particular has he path to the Black Library opened to it. That would mean it belonged to a Harlequin. Who did you kill to get one of these?"

"Nobody, it was a gift from a farseer," Seiras said truthfully.

Aelendriel concealed the remote again and smirked, "A gift huh? I doubt that. No Aeldari in their right mind would just give one of these away...especially to a monkeigh. To be honest, I'm actually surprised you managed to steal one. That's twice you've impressed me now."

 _'Why would she keep that information from the others? She practically dismissed Nelfaera's claims that I was knowledgeable on Eldar. I should be wary of this wych. Also, If the webway remote was this valuable, then why did Iruna give that thing to me?! No wonder that warlock was upset...'_ Seiras couldn't help but wonder.

"Well it's yours now. Enjoy it, master," Seiras feigned carelessness.

"Master? While I do find pleasure in your subservience, I didn't expect to see you so well-adjusted in such a short time here. We haven't even tortured you yet." Aelendriel remarked with amusement.

"Every second I spend here is torture, so I beg to differ," Seiras said calmly.

' _I should avoid mentioning that bizarre kiss thing they did earlier. If I keep feigning indifference to it, they might just forget about doing that as opposed to standard torture,'_ Seiras thought to himself.

The succubus cocked her head and gave him a sly look, "How'd you like your surprise earlier?"

' _She's reading my every reaction. I can't mess this up…_ ' Seiras mentally prepped himself as he kept a stoic expression.

"I don't understand what the purpose of that act was for? Were you trying to poison me?" he asked feigning ignorance.

Aelendriel smiled at his question, "Hmm…a poisoned kiss does seem like a good idea. I like the way you think. So, tell me, Seiras…did you enjoy that kiss with Kaerith? It looked like she certainly enjoyed it. I didn't know she had monkeigh fetish hahaha. If you want I could properly introduce you two."

"What is a kiss? Is that what she did to me?" he asked hoping Aelendriel would give up this route.

"You're not fooling me with your little act here, Seiras. I know you know exactly what a kiss is, so answer my question…how was it?" She followed up with a teasing tone.

"I actually don't. Astartes are bred for war and nothing else. I don't know what that alien nonsense you did earlier was," he said keeping up the act.

Aelendriel twirled her archite glaive a few times in boredom as she rolled her eyes, "It's a sign of affection, fool. It's one of the few cultural similarities our race shares with yours."

"Why would that wych do it to me then?" he asked.

"Because she likes you, obviously," Aelendriel chuckled.

Seiras gave her a hateful and blank stare, "This might work on regular humans, but Astartes have no romantic or sexual interest in even our own kind…let alone vile xenos filth like your race. It won't work on me."

 _'Why is Aelendriel testing me? Isn't she the one who didn't believe it to begin with? These xenos are very contradictory,'_ he thought concerned.

"Well, some of my fellow wyches seem to believe you're different. Given the fact that you know a decent amount about our race, I'm willing to believe it. You also wouldn't stop looking at me the entire time we escorted you out of the slave chamber. Care to explain what that was all about?" she remarked.

' _Why would she dismiss Nelfaera's claims about me if she believes her?'_ Seiras couldn't help but think.

"That's because you're still alive, and I want to kill you," Seiras dissuaded.

Aelendriel nodded, "That is understandable given you almost killed me before the bloodbrides took you out. What do you think about the other wyches in our cult?"

"You're referring to that teal haired one with the ridiculous hairstyle?" Seiras clarified knowingly.

Aelendriel beamed, "Yes, I take it you don't like her?"

"If I had to choose between killing you or her, I'd choose her," Seiras stated coldly.

"Hmph...yes, that's Nelfaera. She is rather intolerable, isn't she? I can't fault you for disliking a delinquent like her. She may be trueborn and a Syren, but she's as graceful as a street thug. It's rather ironic that her biggest fans are the local hellion gangs. Even a lot of the lower ranking Kabalites like her. Most of the upper echelon of the Kabal think she is too ambitious and annoying," Aelendriel said condescendingly.

"Why didn't you tell her my name if you knew it?" Seiras asked.

Aelendriel grinned wickedly, "Why would I? Watching you make a fool of her was rather funny."

"So...the other wych told me that I'd be fighting one of you in the arenas. Which one of you is it?" Seiras asked. He already knew the answer but had to keep up appearances.

"Me, actually. Although...I'm starting to have second thoughts about fighting you," Aelendriel trailed off.

The librarian looked at her unconvinced, "I doubt that."

"Oh, but it's true, Seiras. Maybe I can give you the chance to kill Nelfaera instead. The match would go to her if I declined it. Wouldn't that be a mutually beneficial arrangement?" the succubus smirked.

"You must have great confidence in my abilities if you'd allow her to steal your glory like that," he said doubtfully.

"You doubt yourself? Odd...I thought you were a great warrior," she sneered at him with haughty smugness. Her expression and tone made it seem like she was making fun of him.

"I'm no great warrior. I'm a psyker and I've always focused more on battlefield command and support over martial skill. Not to mention, I'm at a huge disadvantage fighting in your arenas since I highly doubt you're going to let me use any weapons or armour anyway," Seiras said dryly.

She looked at him with an uncertain face and did not respond for a long moment. Seiras knew why she wasn't speaking. Aelendriel was more than likely wondering why he didn't boast about his chances despite defeating her.

The succubus sighed at him finally, "Do you doubt your ability to win without those things?"

"No, but it seems odd that you're confident in my ability to defeat your friend," he countered.

"She's not my friend. I actually want you to embarrass her since she's been bragging about capturing you. That little bitch needs a reality check. She thinks she's better than me because she ambushed you," Aelendriel said darkly.

"What if she defeats me? Don't you care about your reputation? That'll make her look superior to you." Seiras taunted her.

"Oh, I do care...but letting you fight Nelfaera would solve a lot of my problems. I have no doubts that you could kill her. You almost killed me...and I'm way better than she is," Aelendriel stated factually.

"I imagine you intend on fighting me immediately after I get rid of her for you?" Seiras figured out instantly.

"Exactly. You're surprisingly smart for a human. She was right about that much at least. Either way, you're going to die a horrible death. Though at least you'll get some vindication. If you let Nelfaera kill you, I'll personally bring you back to life just to torture you to death for the next thousand of your human years," she threatened.

 _'Nelfaera mentioned the Haemonculi could bring people back to life if they are killed. If I could get my hands on that kind of knowledge and technology, there's no telling what I could do with it!'_ Seiras thought somewhat intrigued by the idea.

"So, the haemonculi can bring me back to life once you kill me?" Seiras asked her.

"Typically, they can only do it for our own kind, but Melisara is a uniquely gifted haemonculus. She resurrected a monkeigh girl for the Archon a while back. She'd be more than willing to try it on a space marine..." Aelendriel said maliciously.

Seiras looked a bit confused, "If your race can revive its dead, then why are you all so afraid of dying?"

"That's because only the most esteemed and rich of our kind could pay for such a service. Only high ranking trueborns would have any kind of political power to buy the haemonculis' services. Seeing as how I'm a succubus and a trueborn, it's no issue for me to bring you back to life if you try to take the easy way out," she licked her lips.

Just then, an idea crossed Seiras' mind as Aelendriel eyed him like a predator.

"You know my name...What's your name, wych?" he asked.

"You already know my name, monkeigh...it's master. Why so curious all of a sudden? Are you hoping I'll kiss you too?" she laughed at him.

Seiras looked at her unamused and responded, "Is your name Aelendriel or Renfaeda? Nelfaera mentioned those names when she first interrogated me," Seiras lied.

The succubus' eyes lit up with shock. It took her a moment to actually respond as she looked around to make sure nobody was eavesdropping. She leaned in closer to his cage and whispered, "What did she say exactly?"

"She said I wasn't very impressive for being able to defeat Aelendriel in combat. I'm assuming that's your name?" Seiras asked.

The succubus leered at him, "So, you already knew my name, and yet you asked me anyway? What kind of game are you playing?"

"I was just curious to see if you'd actually tell me. I guess not...Aelendriel," he replied.

The Succubus gave him a slight chuckle as she grinded her sharp nails over the bars of his cage, "You pronounce my name very well for someone who's only heard it once."

"You pronounced mine correctly having only read it from my armour," Seiras replied.

"What can I say? Monkeigh grammar and language is childishly easy to understand," Aelendriel giggled.

"Nelfaera mentioned your name a great deal. Maybe I can tell you what she said if you answer some of my questions," Seiras followed up.

"Did she now? Are you sure you want to play this game with me, Seiras? You might not like where it goes or what I tell you." Aelendriel smirked wickedly.

"You might not like what I tell you...or maybe you will," he countered.

"Okay then...tell me what Nelfaera said and I'll answer any of your questions," she grinned.

"She boasted about how important she was after I asked if she was a messenger. She told me she was the highest ranking wych in your cult beneath the Succubus Renfaeda. I asked her if that was you and she said no. That's when she mentioned my lack of achievement for defeating Aelendriel...you. I believe the exact phrase was: _'Don't go assuming you're a match for me just because you bested that ugly failure, Aelendriel.'_ " Seiras lied.

Aelendriel looked visibly upset by his lie, "Not only did she call me ugly, but she told you that she was the highest ranking wych beneath Renfaeda?! I'm a succubus and she's a syren! I outrank her in the cult!"

"Isn't the dark blue haired wych the Succubus of the Cult? She's Renfaeda, right?" he asked.

"She's the ruling Succubus yes..." Aelendriel said slowly.

"I wasn't even aware there was more than one succubus per wych cult. How does that work?" Seiras shrugged.

"Usually, there are three in a triumvirate...though one rules the cult and the other two are raid leaders and advisors. Nelfaera is a syren. A Syren is the commanding wych of the Hekatrix bloodbrides...the personal handmaidens of a succubus. Below them are the regular Hekatrix who lead squads of Hekatarii. Below them are the standard Hekatarii, and then the new recruits...the debutantes. Do you understand now?" she explained.

"If you and Renfaeda are both succubi, then who is the third one?" he asked.

"That would be Mokaela. She's out raiding right now with some other Archon, or you'd probably have seen her already. She's been rather disappointed in our lack of good opponents in the arenas lately, and so she went out to find some. Mokaela should be back any day now though. She's like me and is easy to spot, so you'll know her when you see her. She has silver-blue hair and beautiful red eyes. Mokaela is my rival...though I don't dislike her. She's surprisingly likable," Aelendriel explained.

 _'That probably means she's a horrible and evil sadist who bathes in the blood and tears of children,'_ Seiras thought doubtfully.

"Well, after her introduction, Nelfaera also told me that she was the Archon's lover and his favorite wych," Seiras lied again. He was curious to see if the succubus would actually fall for it. He knew that she liked Archon Faelan thanks to his eavesdropping. Not to mention, his story seemed believable because there was no possible way he could have learned their names without being told. At least that's what they would think. They would never consider the fact that he knew their language. At least that's what he was hoping for.

"She...what?!" Aelendriel gasped with evident anger in her voice. She looked like she was about to go on a childish tantrum before calming herself.

She looked furious as she bit her lip. After a short pause she spoke with bitter disgust, "They're cousins...she told you they were lovers?"

Seiras shrugged, "Pretty much. I didn't know about the cousins part, but I'm honestly not surprised you xenos indulge in foul practices like that. Incest seems mild compared to most of the things I've seen here so far."

"She's on my last nerve," Aelendriel hissed.

"Out of curiosity, master Aelendriel, why doesn't Nelfaera like you?" Seiras asked after a brief silence.

Aelendriel looked somewhat bitter as she gripped her impaler tightly, "We both used to be bloodbrides and had to compete with one another to become the third succubus. I won obviously and she's been upset about it ever since. She's just jealous that I'm better than her."

"Better how?" Seiras tilted his head with confusion.

"You don't think I'm better than her?" the succubus tested him.

"You certainly are. I'd much rather have you torture and kill me. That makes a real difference in my experience here," he said with a straight face.

"Was that supposed to be a joke? I didn't realize you were funny," she laughed as she leaned in closer.

Seiras remained silent as he chose not to respond to her laughing.

The succubus eyed him slyly and after a short pause she spoke up again, "Do you think I'm better looking than her?"

"I don't understand what you're asking. You all look the same to me," he lied.

Aelendriel flashed a strangely wicked grin, "Then why were you staring at me so much earlier?"

Seiras wasn't sure how to respond to her. He finally said the first thing he could think of, "I already told you…because I wanted to kill you."

"You sure that's all you wanted?" she said foxily.

He gave her a hate-filled glare, "Nothing would make me happier than to rip you apart like I did to those idiots in that slave chamber."

"Assuming you even could…would you really want to? I could make your life much better here if you cooperated with me. What do you say?" Aelendriel asked with a snake-tongued voice.

Seiras gave her a doubtful glare, "Better how, exactly? I'm just a caged animal waiting to be slaughtered here."

"Some animals make good pets," she laughed.

"Some pets kill their masters," Seiras countered.

"I didn't think it was possible, but I actually kind of like you. Kill Nelfaera and I'll let you try out those fantasies," Aelendriel giggled.

"What fantasies?" Seiras scoffed.

"Whichever ones you want…" she said vaguely with a suggestive smile.

' _She finds humans disgusting, but she's being overly suggestive. I know for a fact she's lying to me. I need to outsmart her and find a way to get her killed. If I have any hope of escaping Commorragh, I'll need that webway generator remote back. Maybe I should pretend to be cooperative with her.'_ Seiras reflected on the situation.

"I'll humor you, Eldar, but don't expect anything else from me. I have no misconceptions about what awaits me here…" Seiras replied stoically.

Aelendriel shook her head, "That's what you think, Seiras…also, call me Aelendriel. I rather liked hearing you say my name properly. Get rid of Nelfaera for me and maybe I will change my mind about killing you. Having a pet space marine would make for a pretty good trophy. Would you like that?"

Seiras did not respond as he knew it was a bad idea. If he said no, then Aelendriel would do it to spite him. If he said yes, then she would ridicule him for it. Either way, he was in a bad position.

"See you around…Seiras," Aelendriel smirked before walking away a moment later.

' _She needs to die as soon as possible. She'll be an even bigger problem than Nelfaera at this rate,'_ Seiras sighed mentally.

 **Later**

A few wyches came by to look at Seiras after one of their breaks. All three had blue hair and were scantily clad unsurprisingly. Though he wasn't looking directly at them, Seiras knew they were staring at him.

One began to speak in her alien tongue, **"That's the monkeigh that bested Aelendriel?"**

 **"Yes, he's the one. I was part of that raid...he killed over a hundred kabalites too. It took Renfaeda's Hekatrix Bloodbrides and a few of the Archon's Incubi to finally take him down,"** another answered.

 **"Really? He killed that many of our warriors? Why was he so hard to defeat? He doesn't look very strong."** the first wych said shocked.

 **"Ask Nelfaera...she's told the story about a dozen times now. At medium and long range his psychic powers made him unstoppable...but in close combat he's slow and the Hekatrix bloodbrides were able to sweep in and take him out with focused effort,"** the second wych explained.

A third wych shook her head, **"Nelfaera was only able to do that because he was fighting Aelendriel at the time. Which version of the story did you hear?"**

 **"Everyone I've spoken to about that raid all says the same outlandish nonsense about how powerful that human is. It's all a bunch of hyped up nonsense if you ask me. They're just trying to make themselves seem more impressive and hype up his reputation for when they actually kill this animal tomorrow,"** the first wych ranted.

 **"Who's fighting him?"** one of the others asked.

 **"Aelendriel obviously...she's going to lose all her notoriety if she doesn't,"** the second wych interjected.

The third one shook her head, **"Actually, Nelfaera has the match now. Aelendriel passed."**

 **"What?!"** one gasped.

 **"She must have convinced Renfaeda to let her fight him instead of Aelendriel. Those two are going to be at each other's throats now,"** another giggled.

 **"As if they weren't already?"** the first wych said shaking her head.

The second wych simply laughed, **"I'm surprised Aelendriel hasn't killed her yet. Nelfaera doesn't know her place and Renfaeda sure won't do anything to stop her. The only reason Nelfaera's still alive is because she's Renfaeda's cousin."**

 **"Talking about me I see..."** a voice interrupted the three wyches. They all froze in fear when they spotted Nelfaera standing behind them.

The teal haired syren had a malicious glare as she grabbed the second wych by her hair, **"The only wyches who don't know their places around here are you three whores! You want to settle this in the arena with a blood duel?"**

 **"N-no, Nelfaera! I...I didn't mean that,"** the wych replied fearfully.

Nelfaera then took her wristblade and carved a large scar over the wych's face causing her to shriek. She then threw the wych to the ground and spit on her, **"There's a little scar to remind you of your place in comparison to mine! Next time I'm going to dip your face in acid and scalp that pretty blue hair of yours!"**

The wych immediately leapt up and began to flee away holding onto her bleeding face. She looked greatly upset though not wounded. Seiras figured it was probably more emotionally damaging than physical as the Hekatarii greatly valued their appearances.

The other two wyches didn't even bother to stick around while their friend was getting cut and were now long gone as well. Nelfaera licked the blood off of her blade before making her way over to Seiras' cage.

She took in his reaction and chuckled, "I could teach you a thing or two about how to carve people up, space marine."

"If you say so...Nelfaera," he replied.

The syren's eyes lit up with shock as she tilted her head confused, "You know my name?! You even pronounced it correctly too...that's unbelievable. How did you learn my name?!"

"Aelendriel told me her name and yours," he said casually.

Nelfaera seemed surprised as she looked away for a moment. She turned her gaze back upon him after a short pause, "She passed her match with you and gave it to me. What made her do that? I heard rumors that she spoke to you earlier. Tell me what she said."

"She asked me some questions about my life and my belongings that she took. She also did the same boring thing you did and threatened me a bunch as well," Seiras shrugged.

"That doesn't answer my question! Why did she pass the match?!" Nelfaera demanded.

"You'll have to ask her that. She didn't tell me. Though I think she's hoping I'll kill you. She didn't seem to like you very much," Seiras replied.

The teal haired wych sighed over-dramatically, "Nevermind that, why did Aelendriel tell you our names?"

"I promised to give her my name if she told me yours," Seiras lied.

Nelfaera gave him a smug grin, "Really now? And here I was starting to think you hated me. I'm flattered that you desired to know my name so badly. Did you want the name of the bloodbride the kissed you too? Her name is Kaerith by the way…and she likes you."

"Spare me your nonsense, alien. I only wanted to know so I could curse your name after I kill you." he said with cruel bluntness.

"Are you sure about that? I think you have a crush on me," she laughed at him.

"A what?" he asked. Seiras had never heard the expression before.

The wych deadpanned at him, "You seriously don't know what a crush is? Am I saying the word correctly? Huh...your language is too simple to articulate exactly what I'm talking about."

"What a shame...I'm sure it was completely relevant," he said with lackluster sarcasm.

"Well, since you're fighting me tonight, I wanted to ask you. Should I wear my skimpy wychsuit?" she asked with amusement.

"Sure, it'll make you easier to kill," he responded dryly.

Nelfaera burst out laughing at his remark, "We'll see about that. You have no idea how the arenas are, monkeigh. I'll enjoy humiliating you in there. Aelendriel is going to regret passing the match to me. You don't stand a chance!"

Seiras said nothing in response as he simply looked away.

"Nothing smart to say, monkeigh?" Nelfaera asked smugly.

He continued to ignore her as he stared blankly at a wall that had recently become far more interesting. The syren quickly got bored when she realized Seiras wasn't going to speak anymore and began to walk away without another word.

 _'I can't really do much to prepare for fighting Nelfaera, but I should be prepared for Aelendriel afterward. She feints three times in opposite directions before every incoming swing, so I should always block in the opposite direction of her first movements. She's primarily left-handed and moves her right leg forward with every sweeping blow. She likes to switch hands with her weapons during charges and when she circles. I should try to focus more on her non-dominant side and throw her off with my own ambidextrous alternations. I need to anticipate her moves. It might also be a good idea to let her get in some not-fatal blows, so I can grab her. If I get a hold of Aelendriel, I can win. I wonder how Nelfaera fights though…I need to be cautious in my fight with her. I wonder what'll happen if I kill both of them?'_ Seiras began to plan his battle mentally.

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That's a wrap for this chapter people. This one was mostly dialogue and prebattle buildup. The next chapter will feature Seiras' arena debut against these vile wyches. As you can see so far, they all have different motivations and agendas. They might seem childish and petulant, but that's literally dark eldar in a nutshell. How will Seiras deal with them, and which one is the biggest threat to his escape plans? All that and more will be answered soon. If you're still following this fic, then I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks for reading.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Gladiator**

Seiras sat in his cage with his eyes closed and his mind focused. He was confident that he had seen enough of the wyches training to have a good idea of what each of their weapons and attacks were capable of. Most of them fancied razorflails, hydra gauntlets, or impalers. Some liked swords and daggers, but they those weren't as commonly used from what he could see. While wyches did use ranged weapons, Seiras doubted they would use them much in the arena as they fancied melee weapons above all else.

He knew Aelendriel would likely use her archite glaive again, but he wasn't sure what Nelfaera's weapon of choice was. Seiras was adamant in trying to understand the ranges and capabilities of each Hekatarii weapon as he imagined various scenarios where they would be used against him. He also made sure to memorize how to use them in case he would have to use one himself. While he detested the idea of using a xenos weapon, he was not about to deny himself a weapon if the opportunity presented itself. Fighting bare-handed was not the ideal situation against fast opponents like wyches. He needed something with reach and speed, so he could keep them at a distance. He let out a deep breath as he began to pray silently for the Emperor's protection.

Time was impossible to tell during this captivity, but he had seen a variety of wyches come and go multiple times since last seeing Nelfaera. Some would occasionally come by to watch him or insult him, but they usually got bored from his lack of interest. None were brave enough to really get close, but a couple had thrown things at him to get his attention. One even spit on him, but his lack of a response quickly dissuaded any other attempts at provoking him in his cage.

He was still unsure of when he would finally be sent to the arenas and did his best to remain patient during the long and boring isolation. The sound of light footsteps eventually caused him to open his eyes as he turned towards the source. Standing there in front of him was none other than Kaerith. She was out of sight and somewhat concealed as she stood at the back corner of his cage. Seiras eyed her with suspicious hostility as the bloodbride came right up next to his cage.

She whispered quietly to him, "Psst…hey space marine, come here."

The librarian stared at the alien with curiosity, but he did not budge. She looked around somewhat nervously before glancing back at him, "C'mon please?"

' _Did an Eldar just say please to me? I didn't realize they knew that word,'_ Seiras thought surprised as he decided to humor the wych. The corner of his cage she was standing at was completely out of sight for most of the training grounds.

"What is it, Kaerith?" the Blood Raven asked her blankly in a quiet tone.

She blinked several times in shock when he said her name but immediately recovered as she spoke softly, "Did the others tell you my name?"

"Yes," Seiras answered.

She looked away with a bit of annoyance before speaking, "Listen, space marine…I didn't want to kiss you. Just so we're clear on that. The others made me. Don't believe anything they say about me, okay?"

"You mean Nelfaera and Aelendriel?" Seiras said the names of the two wyches responsible.

Kaerith looked caught off guard again as she tilted her head, "Yeah…how do you know their names?"

"Aelendriel told me," he said as if it was a stupid question.

Kaerith shook her head, "Regardless, I didn't want to do that to you…got it? Those two are compulsive liars and they just wanted to humiliate me."

"I don't care, wych. You're all the same to me…xenos fiends that need to be purged," Seiras replied carelessly.

"Listen to me space marine. I'm not really like the others here. Nelfaera knows it and she's always doing stuff like this to make me look bad," Kaerith said a bit distantly.

"How are you any different than the rest of the disgusting xenos sadists here?" Seiras gave her a doubtful look.

She looked around briefly before whispering a bit shamefully, "I…I don't really like being a wych."

"Yet you're a Hekatrix Bloodbride…I find that extremely hard to believe," Seiras said shaking his head.

Kaerith cocked her head with confusion, "How do you know I'm a bloodbride?"

"Nelfaera told me she led the Hekatrix Bloodbrides…I just assumed you were one since you were in her company on both occasions that I saw you," Seiras spoke with a straight face and a convincing tone.

The wych seemed a bit embarrassed as she responded slowly, "Just out of curiosity, what exactly did they tell you about me? I only want to know so I can completely clear up this misunderstanding."

"There's nothing to clear up. I don't care enough to recall what they said," Seiras lied as he shrugged his shoulders.

Kaerith scowled at him, "Yet you remembered my name…why bother if you didn't care? That contradicts what you just said. Care to elaborate?"

Seiras actually had no idea how to respond to her counter as he blankly stared at her. She seemed to take his reaction the wrong way as she spoke up aggressively, "Are you going to tell me or not?"

"All they said was you were a monkeigh lover. I don't believe it or care enough to give it a second thought. I find it extremely insulting that you would even humor the idea that I could believe such obvious nonsense. You're repulsive to me, and I know I'm repulsive to you. I only remembered your name because you defiled my mouth," Seiras dissuaded her.

Her expression was simultaneously one of relief and disappointment. It was likely a hit to her pride that Seiras found her repulsive, but she seemed relieved that he believed her. Seiras had no idea what kind of brief emotion seeped out of her silver eyes as she nodded, "It's good that you didn't misunderstand then."

"As enlightening as this conversation has been, I fail to see why you came all the way over here to tell me. Why are you trying so hard to be stealthy? Are you afraid they'll make fun of you for talking to me? What are you even doing over here?" Seiras asked dryly.

"The main reason I came here was to give you something before your battle," Kaerith responded with a bit anxious malice in her voice.

Seiras stared at her with careless eyes, "What?"

"Come to the edge of the cage," she gestured cautiously as she took a hold of one of the bars.

Deciding to humor her, Seiras approached the wych slowly. He was especially aware of anything around her or in her hands as he did so. She appeared to be holding something in her hand, but it didn't look like a weapon.

Upon reaching her, Kaerith looked around carefully again before leaning her head against the cage, "Closer…"

"This is close enough…" Seiras said cautiously.

"Come on, hurry up. They're coming to get you soon…I need to give it to you before you go," she said a bit desperately.

"Give me what?" Seiras growled.

She then reached her arm in, "Here, hold my arm if you don't trust me. I'm not trying to trick you."

Seiras watched with surprise as she nervously stuck her arm into the cage. With a strong and large hand, Seiras grabbed ahold of her.

Kaerith looked noticeably fearful as she felt Seiras' grip tighten uncomfortably. He pulled her body against the outer bars of the cage and held her tightly which caused her to tense up. Despite her concern, she spoke urgently, "Lean in, hurry…I can hear them coming."

"Why should I do that?" he asked dangerously.

The bloodbride grimaced in pain as his grip tightened, "Wait…please don't. I'm trying to help you."

"How do you plan on doing that? And better yet…why would you? Do you think this little act is clever? Pretending to be different than the others just to trick me isn't exactly an original idea," he said darkly as he squeezed harder.

The wych's face twisted into a painful expression as she spoke urgently, "Just trust me okay…I trusted you enough to let you grab my arm, didn't I? Do you really think I would try and deceive you right before your battle? What would I have to gain from it? I'm not even fighting you."

Finally deciding to humor her, Seiras leaned in right next to Kaerith's face. With her other hand, she held up a vial of some sort, "Drink it…"

"What is it?" Seiras asked hesitantly.

"It's a triple dosage of a delayed onset adrenal combat stimulant in a purified liquid form. The moment your adrenaline peaks it will activate in your bloodstream and your nervous system. It'll help you in the arena," Kaerith explained.

"Why are you offering something like this to me?" he asked.

"I want you to kill Nelfaera…rip her apart. Kill Aelendriel too. Crush her and bash her face in. I hate both of those arrogant condescending bitches. They need to be taught a lesson. Nobody humiliates me and gets away with it," Kaerith replied emotionally.

The librarian knew it wasn't the best idea to trust a dark eldar, but given Kaerith's willingness to put herself at risk, he decided to take a risk and trust her.

"Fine," he agreed as Kaerith raised the vial to his mouth. She poured it in swiftly before immediately concealing the vial.

"Swallow it quickly," Kaerith commanded.

Doing as instructed, Seiras swallowed the unusual tasting liquid. He immediately felt his hearts beginning to quicken in pace but calmed them immediately to prevent any adrenaline bursts. The stimulant had a horrible taste, but he stomached it nonetheless.

" **Where is that space marine at? Show him to me, Aelendriel!"** an unfamiliar and surprisingly upbeat voice sounded loudly.

Seiras immediately let go of Kaerith before backing away from her. She wasn't in any position to sneak away as two wyches arrived a moment later. Standing in front of them was none other than Aelendriel and another wych that Seiras did not recognize.

She had silver and blue hair that was fashioned into some type of extremely long and elaborate mohawk mullet with bangs covering half of her face. One half was completely blue and the other was completely silver as it went down the middle of her hairline. It greatly reminded Seiras of the strange and colorful hairstyles he had seen the women in Meridian's hive gangs wear. He remembered an Arbite once referring to it as 'edgy'. The bangs of the wych's hair looked like they were sparkling which was quickly revealed to be spiked gems in her hair. The back of her hair was long and free flowing like a horse's mane and she had a white streaked striped going down the middle separating the silver from the blue.

The wych's red eyes seemed less sinister than that of other wyches, but they carried a playful mischievousness to them. Seiras instantly figured that she must have been Mokaela, the third succubus of the cult.

" **This is him, Mokaela. Meet Seiras our captive Deathwatch space marine. He's a psyker too by the way,"** Aelendriel explained.

Mokaela beamed with delight as she ran up next to the Astartes' cage, **"Oooohh…you didn't tell me he was cute. That's a nice looking monkeigh."**

" **You think he's cute?"** Aelendriel scoffed with a bit of disapproval.

Mokaela glanced at the other succubus and chuckled, **"Well…for a human anyways. I like his eyes…they look so intense…like a hunter's. Good facial symmetry and decent looking hair too. What was his name again?"**

" **Seiras. Go ahead and talk to him if you want. He's amusing to speak to** ," Aelendriel said with a laugh.

It was at this moment, both succubi noticed Kaerith trying to obscurely leave. Aelendriel immediately called her out, **"Where do you think you're going, Kaerith? What are you doing over here all alone? Trying to get some quality time in with your boyfriend you monkeigh lover?"**

" **I was just leaving,"** Kaerith said with a bit of bold hostility.

" **Now now, don't leave on our accord. I was just introducing Mokaela to Seiras. You should stay,"** Aelendriel smirked.

" **What did I miss exactly? He's her boyfriend?"** Mokaela interjected with amusement.

" **Ahahaha, you missed it Mokaela, but Nelfaera made Kaerith kiss the space marine. She exposed her for being a monkeigh lover,"** Aelendriel laughed.

Kaerith glared at Aelendriel, **"I'm not the one on a first name basis with him. The monkeigh knows your name and you apparently told him mine!"**

" **Did he tell you that? Does that make you jealous that he knows me better than you?"** the succubus said with condescending smugness.

Kaerith looked like she was about to say something reckless, but immediately silenced herself as she swallowed her pride, **"That's nonsense and you know it, Aelendriel."**

" **Sure it is…I totally believe you,"** the succubus said with a sarcastic smirk.

" **Well at least she has good taste. Don't tease her too badly, Aelendriel. A monkeigh fetish is pretty mild these days. I'm pretty sure all of the Aeshuls have monkeigh fetish,"** Mokaela chuckled with gleeful amusement.

Aelendriel shook her head, **"I don't really care…I just think it's funny that she's so mad about it still."**

Kaerith's silver eyes radiated disgust as she stared at Aelendriel, **"Why did you talk to the Monkeigh earlier?"**

" **Oh that? I had a very interesting conversation with Seiras if you must know…though it's not really any of your business."** Aelendriel said vaguely with a demeaning smile.

Kaerith crossed her arms and scowled hatefully, **"Is that right? Why not?!"**

" **And she says she's not jealous…ahaha!"** Aelendriel laughed at the bloodbride.

" **Oh lighten up you two! There's no need for all of this. There's an arena battle tonight! We should all be happy we get to watch glorious slaughter…especially with an amazing and unique specimen like him. I can't remember the last time we captured a space marine,"** Mokaela said as she swayed her tongue between her teeth.

" **Nelfaera's going to fight him tonight…and probably lose. Seiras is incredibly dangerous and strong. He even killed other monkeigh when Renfaeda put him in one of the slave chambers. He also slaughtered my bloodbrides,"** Aelendriel explained.

" **So this space marine really beat all of your bloodbrides? That's amazing. I can't wait to see him in action,"** Mokaela grinned.

" **He killed Dracon Daeyal's entire vanguard, took out two ravagers and three raiders by himself, and fought my wyches. He could even use psychic powers in proximity to Faelan and his null. It was surprising. Trust me, he's the best catch we've had in ages,"** Aelendriel explained.

" **You're are all so lucky…that raid I went on was lame and boring. We just captured a bunch of these Kroot and Tau. They're pathetic and uninteresting. The only relevant warrior I captured was some Kroot shaper. I would have loved to fight space marines,"** Mokaela said with a dramatic moan.

" **Why did you pass the match to Nelfaera?"** Kaerith spoke up catching Aelendriel's attention.

The succubus shrugged, **"Oh, Renfaeda insisted that I give her a chance…I doubt she'll succeed though."**

Before Kaerith and Aelendriel could get into a conversation on the matter, Mokaela took a step closer towards Seiras.

She tapped his cage and spoke his name cheerily, "Hey, Seiras."

"You're Mokaela I take it? Aelendriel told me about you." Seiras responded causing all three wyches to perk up with surprise at his responsiveness.

"Did she now? All good things I hope?" Mokaela asked.

"Yes," Seiras answered without any follow-up explanation.

"You speak Eldar names so fluently. That's oddly refreshing. Do you know what my name means in our language?" she asked despite the _impossibility_ of him knowing.

' _Kaela means blood and Mo is a prefix used for the word Mor which means death…her name means Bloody Death I assume,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he stared blankly at her.

"It means ' _daughter of bloody death'_. It's symbolic. My father was a harlequin, and he fancied such things," the succubus mused.

"I assume 'Aelendriel' means 'annoying' in your language then?" Seiras asked.

The younger succubus shook her head, "Childish insult…you'll have to try harder than that to get under my skin."

Mokaela chuckled at Seiras' question, "Actually, Aelendriel means 'Wind of the Stars' in our language. It's a rather beautiful name for a beautiful wych, wouldn't you say?"

Seiras glanced at Aelendriel briefly before turning back to Mokaela, "I wouldn't know."

"Take it from me, she's almost as cute as I am. I'm slightly better with my personality though. In your opinion, how cute do I look?!" Mokaela said with a perky laugh.

"Cute?" Seiras asked. He knew what the word meant now, but feigned ignorance.

"Awwww! Don't be mean! You don't think I'm cute?! I think you're cute!" Mokaela said in a playfully childish tone.

Seiras had absolutely no idea what the point of Mokaela's bizarre musings were as gave her a blank stare. He tried to make sense of it in his mind, _'She seems a bit…off mentally. I've never seen an Eldar act or talk like her before.'_

"So you're Kaerith's boyfriend?" she asked him with amusement after Seiras refused to answer her previous question.

The librarian stared at her emotionlessly and lied, "I don't know what that is."

"Oh that's adorable…are you a virgin?" she asked him with a curious grin.

"I don't know," Seiras lied again.

Mokaela laughed at him and shook her head, "You've never mated before?"

"Why would I? I'm a space marine," he replied stoically.

"Hmm…that would be interesting to witness. Do you want me to bring you a monkeigh girl to mate with? I will if you want. Nobody should die a virgin," Mokaela laughed.

Her mentioning of this topic made Seiras recall his memories with the Slaaneshi cultists and Jessenta. He felt the familiar shame wash over him again as he tried to block out the details, _'Why did she have to remind me of that unholy experience with those cultists?'_

Despite the cringe-inducing shame the memories brought, his mind briefly lingered on the memory of Jessenta and the unusual circumstance of their encounter. Every part of him knew it was wrong, but part of him thought about Atia's words about it not being heretical with a pure person.

Seiras was drawn from his thoughts when he heard Mokaela laughing at him, "Oh don't look so sad! You give me the word and I'll get you a pretty little whore right away! I'll even get you one of the debunates if you want. I'm sure one of them will do it to make me happy!"

' _These dark eldar are the most bizarre and unusual xenos in the entire galaxy. I thought craftworlders were difficult to understand. She's manic and mentally unstable by the looks of it.'_ He thought.

"All joking aside, I actually have a serious question for you, Seiras," Mokaela spoke up again after a laughing fit.

He sighed, "What?"

"Have you ever fought wyches before? I mean before encountering our cult," She asked.

Seiras nodded, "I fought the Cult of Strife in the Kaurava System. I've killed many wyches before encountering your cult."

"Oh, so you've got experience with Hekatarii then? That would explain why you fought so well before you got captured. You have my thanks for killing Cult of Strife whores though. They're as pretentious as wyches can get…and that's saying something." Mokaela chuckled with a bit of self-awareness.

Halfway through her laughter, Mokaela's expression went from upbeat and humorous to hate-filled and psychopathic, "I hate those red-haired sluts! I do hope they suffered before they died!"

' _She's definitely crazy…well crazier than the others,'_ Seiras thought somewhat concerned.

"They were eaten by Slaanesh if that counts," Seiras replied.

Kaerith and Aelendriel looked visibly disturbed by the use of the name, but Mokaela was unfazed. The older succubus beamed, "Yes! Oh…that makes me feel so much better knowing that they get to suffer even if they did get quick deaths! You certainly know how to cheer a girl up!"

The return to her upbeat and over the top manic behavior was a bit unnerving as Mokaela looked genuinely happy. Seiras couldn't help but feel disturbed by her behavior. He made sure to mask his reaction however as he maintained an indifferent face.

Before anyone could say another word, a large gathering of wyches led by Renfaeda approached. The succubus queen looked over the others before speaking, **"What are you all doing here?"**

" **I was just showing Mokaela the space marine up close. She kept asking me about him ever since she got back from her raid,"** Aelendriel explained.

" **Well, the battle is starting soon.** **Wyches, get him to the arena. You two, let's go. I have front row seats next to Faelan if you'd like. We can watch it from the pavilion."**

" **Oooh! I've actually never watched a match from there!"** Mokaela chirped with excitement as the three succubi all departed. As soon as they left, a large host of wyches and a Kabal escort drug Seiras out of his cage and guided him to his destination. As he walked out of the cage, he glanced over at Kaerith who was still there. She winked at him as he passed and was smiling proudly.

' _She's strange…I don't sense any deceit or hatred from her. She genuinely wants to help me kill Nelfaera and Aelendriel. I suppose it's still self-serving, but she's not as unnecessarily cruel as the others or as insane as Mokaela,'_ Seiras thought.

He silently progressed alongside his escort as they led him to a massive looking rampway of some sort. Shortly after arriving there, several dark eldar began to prod him with shock rods motioning for him to walk up the ramp.

Seiras made it halfway up before a large barrier came up behind him blocking his path back. He had nowhere to go but forward now. He could hear the thunderous cheers and booming echoes of an excited crowd as he walked further up the path. At the top, some type of gateway barred his way forward.

Nevertheless, he could see into a colossal looking arena. From his vantage point, he saw a host of wyches slaughtering all manner of things ranging from orks, humans, tau, kroot, and even other Eldar.

Nelfaera was among the group of wyches participating. She was currently riding on a skyboard and had a hellglaive in her hands. One of her arms was also equipped with a hydra gauntlet. She slaughtered a poor group of unfortunate humans as she viciously flew by and cut half of their legs off.

The crowd cheered excitedly as Nelfaera took her time slowly murdering and torturing the suffering humans. A number of other wyches there were torturing and mutilating other unfortunate victims as well, but Nelfaera appeared to be the spotlight wych.

After finally hacking up the downed humans to the point of sheer disbelief, Seiras could only watch with horror as Nelfaera cauterized the downed victims' wounds causing bleeding to stop. One poor man was missing all four limbs but was still alive.

Hooking him to her skyboard's chain hook, Nelfaera flew him around on display before mounting his amputated body onto a nearby spike on the wall of the arena. He was still alive but looked to be suffering horribly. Many dark eldar laughed and cheered as similar acts of horror and depravity filled the arena. Watching the violence and the way the wyches unfairly tortured their victims, Seiras felt his heartbeats beginning to quicken. He was getting angry watching this dishonourable slaughter.

" **And there you have it, the preshow entertainment provided by the Cult of Eternal Night! But Ladies and Lords of Commorragh…We have an even more amazing event coming up next! The beautiful and deadly Syren Nelfaera Aeshul, cousin of our mighty Archon Faelan Aeshul, has captured a rare foe in the last raid! Behold, the pinnacle of the monkeigh and their pathetic faith! A mutant monkeigh that they believe is an angel! Hahaha! My Lords…My Ladies! I present to you a Space Marine prisoner versus our beloved Nelfaera!"** an over-excited announcer shouted into some type of broadcast speaker.

The audience erupted into excited roars of ecstasy and anticipation as Seiras' gate opened, and he stepped forward. Looking around at the arena, he was truly amazed by the sheer scale of it. There must have been at least a hundred thousand dark eldar watching from the audience. The arena battleground itself was massive beyond description, and it had a host of different terrains, traps, and other horrible things scattered about. Many corpses littered the battlefield of the arena as well.

Seiras looked around for any sign of someone he recognized. He immediately spotted some type of large pavilion like VIP section where the Archon was sitting. Twelve Incubi were there to his sides as well as Renfaeda, Mokaela, and Aelendriel. Maeralya was sitting right next to Faelan by the looks of it. Further away from the main group, Seiras could see Melisara, the haemonculus, as well as her own escort of wracks and a grotesque.

" **How do you think your cousin will do, Faelan?"** Maeralya asked the archon. Seiras could not hear them from his position, but he could see them talking.

" **Hard to say…the space marine is a lot stronger than many of my warriors gave him credit for. It will be interesting to see how he fares without his psychic powers or his armour,"** Faelan noted.

Maeralya looked closer at Seiras before glancing at Faelan, **"You really think that lumbering oversized monkeigh is a match for Nelfaera?"**

" **You have no idea how fast space marines are, Maeralya…just watch. He's going to kick Nelfaera's ass,"** Aelendriel exclaimed with a matter of fact tone.

" **Rooting for the monkeigh?"** Maeralya chuckled at the succubus.

Aelendriel shrugged, **"Not exactly…but once Nelfaera's done embarrassing herself, I'll fight him."**

" **You shouldn't underestimate her, Aelendriel. Nelfaera's a great warrior,"** Faelan defended his cousin.

Aelendriel narrowed her gaze disapprovingly but didn't say a word.

As Seiras walked further into the arena, he looked up and could see a massive display screen which showed a closeup of him. It was similar to a broadcast stadium vid and it was recording him live. The librarian refocused his gaze around when he heard the sound of Nelfaera's skyboard approaching.

She flew around him once before stopping in front of Seiras and leaping off the flying platform. The audience cheered excitedly as the Syren gave a beautiful pose with her hellglaive.

True to her word, Nelfaera was wearing her 'skimpy wychsuit'. In Seiras' opinion, it was one of the most ridiculous outfits he had ever seen. It might have been more accurate to call it a bikini leotard, though Seiras didn't know what that was and couldn't make the comparison. Her legs were armoured up to the thigh and she was wearing a metal sleeve with a spiked pauldron on her left arm. The right arm was bare flesh, minus the hydra gauntlet on it.

Nelfaera even had makeup on much to Seiras' disbelief. _'She's dressed like she's going to mate. What's the purpose of fighting half naked?'_

The irony struck a moment later when Seiras remembered he was pretty much fighting in loincloth underwear.

Blood splatters covered Nelfaera's body, and a glistening glow from the fresh blood could be seen from her translucent pale skin. The Syren spoke proudly as she approached Seiras, "You won't enjoy this…and it won't be over quickly!"

Seiras was surprised when her voice sounded loudly throughout the entire arena, _'They're broadcasting and projecting her voice? I wonder if it will broadcast mine as well?'_

"You xenos have no honour…slaughtering defenseless slaves doesn't make you a great warrior," Seiras said with disgust. True to his theory, he heard his voice echo throughout the arena. Many dark eldar booed and laughed at him for speaking, and he could hear the crowd chanting demeaning insults.

"I'm going to make you my bitch, space marine! You'll be begging for death before it's over!" Nelfaera proclaimed proudly.

Seiras glanced over towards a dead body about two hundred meters away. Next to it was a razorflail in the hands of a dead wych. He then looked the other direction and saw an Eldar power sword lying on the ground. It was a lot closer.

Nelfaera seemed to notice his observations and smirked, "Try it…you're not faster than I am. I'll cut you down before you ever get there!"

The librarian then immediately charged Nelfaera's direction instead of either weapon which seemed to catch her off guard slightly. She swiftly evaded his charge which was much faster than she was expecting.

"Too slow, monkeigh!" Nelfaera taunted as she gracefully flipped around off the ground with her hellglaive.

Her expression went from proud to bewildered a moment later when she saw Seiras jump onto her skyboard. It spun around ungracefully for a few moments as Seiras tried to balance himself on it.

Despite being heavy and oversized for the flying platform, Seiras finally managed to quickly balance himself on the skyboard. The audience could only watch with disbelief as Seiras flew it away from Nelfaera. Despite being nowhere near as dexterous as an Eldar, Seiras was still able to pilot the vehicle with relative success.

He flew it towards the dead wych several hundred meters away and immediately jumped off to grab the wych's razorflail. Nelfaera was swiftly running in his direction at a ridiculous speed. She was no doubt embarrassed that he just stole her ride in front of everyone.

Seiras quickly remounted the skyboard and took a moment to rebalance himself as his slightest change in pressure caused it to jerk. With extreme discipline and muscular flexion, he maintained his poise as he managed to fly away from Nelfaera again.

The Syren narrowly missed as she leapt high into the air trying to dismount him from the skyboard. She hissed in complete fury as Seiras gained distance again as he flew in the opposite direction.

At this point the entire audience was laughing as if it was some type of circus show where an animal did a super amazing trick.

Renfaeda watched with disbelief as she turned towards Faelan, **"How does he know how to fly a skyboard? Do all Deathwatch space marines know how to do that?!"**

" **I…don't think so. That's very strange that he knew how it worked. Though some of my men said he was able to pilot a ravager. This is an interesting battle so far,"** Faelan noted.

" **That's impossible! How's a monkeigh flying one of those?!"** Maeralya gaped.

From her position, Melisara watched with an amused grin, **"Very interesting…he knows how our technology works. Perhaps he's a scholar like me after all."**

" **What are you talking about over there, Lady Melisara?"** Maeralya asked interested.

" **Nothing my dear…just thinking aloud,"** Melisara cackled as she watched with fascination.

" **Nelfaera looks like a fool right now, haha!"** Aelendriel laughed as she watched the frustrated Syren charging after Seiras.

The teal-haired wych shouted at the top of her lungs, "Get back here you fucker!"

Seiras flew down towards the body with a power sword on it and quickly crouched down on the skyboard and picked it up off the ground without having to dismount. It wasn't the prettiest pickup, but he did it without falling off thankfully. He was getting slightly better at it now as he began to understand how it reacted to his body.

The audience found it entertaining as they continued to laugh. A large chorus of boos soon followed however as Seiras began to fly higher and further away from Nelfaera.

' _I can't let her use this thing to fight me. I should destroy it before I fight her…maybe I can use it against her, but I'm not entirely comfortable getting close to her on this thing. It'd be terrible if I miscalculated and she could reacquire it,'_ Seiras thought as he flew barely out of Nelfaera's range causing her to get flustered with anger and embarrassment.

' _How do the weapons work on these things? I know they can shoot splinter rounds…oh here we go,'_ Seiras thought as he messed around with some type of foot pedal which caused the skyboard to start shooting.

From his current position, it began to fire into the audience. He couldn't help but find enjoyment as many people in its line of fire began to panic and disperse as Seiras flew around the audience blasting dark eldar apart.

Part of him felt a strangely euphoric enjoyment in watching the audience cry out in fear as Seiras began to murder people by the dozens. Several began to shoot weapons at him from the audience, but they weren't very successful as Seiras flew into melee range and cleaved a whole row of viewers in half with the razorflail in his hand.

When more heavy firepower came his way, he narrowly ducked as he piloted the skyboard a safe distance away from the crowd.

The audience was booing heavily now as Nelfaera stopped chasing him and stood in the middle of the arena seething with anger.

' _It's now or never…but first, to get rid of this thing,'_ Seiras thought as he flew towards the Archon's pavilion. The audience stopped booing when they saw this and a few actually let out a gasp of amazement as Seiras accelerated at full speed towards the pavilion.

He then locked the pedal down and kept it firing and flying forward before diving off the skyboard and landing in front of the pavilion. A moment later the flying platform crashed into the pavilion. Seiras was not surprised to see it did no damage as a force field of some kind blocked the explosion.

' _Well that's a smart way to prevent assassination attempts,'_ Seiras thought briefly as he stared up at the Archon's retinue.

He didn't get long to take in their bewildered expressions before an extremely upset Nelfaera began to assail him with furious aggression. With the razorflail and the power sword in either hand, Seiras countered her assault with brutal strength and speed.

The audience began to erupt into excitement as the melee battle finally began. Nelfaera spun her hellglaive in endless arcing sweeps as she gracefully spun around and danced circles around Seiras trying to land a hit.

Seiras found her fighting style surprisingly aggressive and bold as she attempted to parry and disarm him multiple times in their initial exchange. Truthfully, he believed she fought more like a khornate berserker than a wych as she recklessly assailed him. Unfortunately for her, such a tactic wasn't very practical when your opponent was way stronger and heavier than you. All of her attempts to disarm him failed as Seiras easily overpowered her in weapon clashes.

She looked extremely upset as she focused solely on her objective to attack. Despite her anger and incredible melee skill however, she was caught off guard when Seiras kicked up dirt into her face during one of her charges.

Nelfaera hissed as she stopped and narrowly ducked from a powerful sword swing. By the time her vision cleared up, she saw a powerful foot which immediately kicked her a considerable distance away. The wych flew back several meters before landing on her feet in a backflip. She crouched low and charged in again but was unable to reach Seiras as the space marine twirled the razorflail at her in effective sweeps.

The Syren swiftly leapt back as the razorflail whistled through the air and almost cut her leg off. She stopped briefly and stared at Seiras with disbelief, "You know how to use a razorflail?!"

"You make it sound like it's some incredible feat…" Seiras replied with callousness.

In truth, Seiras had seen these weapons in action many times in his life and had also watched many of the training wyches use them during his confinement in the cage. The razorflail was essentially a segmented sword that could coil around like a snake or into a straight blade if necessary. It could double as a whip and a sword which made it an excellent weapon for offense and defense.

He mimicked the motions he had seen the wyches using them with and was able to create an aggressively defensive area around himself as he flailed it in patterned spins. Nelfaera looked somewhat concerned about it as she attempted to parry the blade with her hellglaive.

While this might have normally been effective at stripping it from someone's grip or holding the weapon still, Seiras' superior strength made it nearly impossible for her to do so. It proved very ineffective at hooking the razorflail. When her weapon collided with his, Seiras retracted it into a straight blade and jerked her in as he stabbed towards her with eldar power sword in his other hand.

In a desperate effort, Nelfaera evaded the sword and kicked off of Seiras flinging herself back a safe distance away. She looked noticeably more serious now as she sporadically twitched in random directions in an attempt to juke him.

She shuffled back and forth several times as she advanced swiftly spinning several times and flipping midair as she jumped over him. Serias immediately ducked as a midair decapitation narrowly missed him from behind.

The audience exploded into a loud gasp of excitement at the athletic feat and were noticeably anxious for blood to be spilled. Seiras spun around and let out a bloodthirsty roar as he flailed both weapons in a deadly flurry. His roar echoed throughout the arena and was amplified even louder by the vid broadcast overhead.

It was at this moment, Seiras felt his two hearts beginning to pound extra fast as the blood in his body began to heat up considerably. His arteries constricted, and the bronchi in his lungs dilated as a tingling and almost electric rush flooded his entire body. Time also seemed to slow down slightly as he was able to see Nelfaera's movements much better now.

' _That combat stimulant is taking effect!'_ Seiras thought seriously as he began to move faster and swing much harder than before.

Nelfaera quickly noticed his drastic increase in combat movements as he nearly cut her in half from a blindingly fast sword swing. Nelfaera could only dodge nimbly now as she began to avoid him completely. She looked worried when it became apparent that Seiras was now as fast as her.

From the archon's pavilion, Mokaela spoke with surprise, **"He's got Nelfaera on the defensive. That's surprising."**

" **Is it really though? I told you all he was strong. I'm not some joke for losing to him in a fight…"** Aelendriel made sure to reiterate loud enough for everyone to hear.

" **Am I crazy or is he moving faster now?** Maeralya asked Faelan with uncertainty.

" **He definitely is…but it's strange he's doing it now,"** Renfaeda interjected.

" **In general, he's moving faster than I remember. Perhaps his armour hinders his movements more than I originally suspected. He has a certain dexterity about him without that cumbersome monkeigh armour on him,"** Faelan said with a hand on his chin. Sitting at the Archon's feet with a chained collar around her throat, a red-haired woman silently watched the battle with her empty amber eyes.

Faelan noticed her unusual interest in the battle and nudged her with his boot as he spoke in gothic, "I see you're interested in the battle, Meela."

The red-haired woman glanced up at Faelan from her humble position and nodded without saying a word.

"Is it common for Deathwatch space marines to learn how to use our technology?" he asked her with a curious expression.

She shook her head before making a few hand gestures. None of the other Eldar there seemed to understand it except for Faelan. He nodded at her silent gesturing, "Ah…I see. So it's heresy to use xenos technology openly. Very curious indeed…he's definitely not an average space marine."

Renfaeda looked at the red-haired human woman with distaste, **"Why do you insist on keeping that monkeigh girl with you everywhere you go, Faelan? A psyker's not going to attack you in Commorragh."**

" **No, but I will not have her taken away from me and sent to Khaine's Gate. Nulls fetch a high price, but she's not for sale!"** Faelan said aggressively.

" **There were daemon attacks a while back from what I heard. Besides you never know how stable Commorragh is after that Ynnari ordeal. Faelan has every reason to expect the possibility of that spreading here. Keeping a null around is smart…not to mention, she's at least pretty to look at. I rather like Meela,"** Maeralya spoke up.

Renfaeda scoffed, **"Nobody asked you, Maeralya…all I'm saying is that monkeigh girl is creepy. I don't like her being around you all the time. She doesn't ever talk, and she just stares at everything and everyone with those horrible empty eyes. I've seen necrons with more emotion than her. She's an abomination."**

" **That's a null for you, Faeda. She's worth more than every slave in the Kabal…even more than that space marine. She's worth more to me than half the damn Kabal too. Why do you think I'd ever let her out of my sight?"** Faelan shook his head.

Aelendriel looked at Faelan with deep observant eyes before glancing at the human woman sitting at his feet. The red-haired woman, Meela, looked remarkably unscathed and mostly comfortable despite her neck collar with a chain. She was wearing an unnecessarily skimpy outfit as well. Despite being Faelan's personal slave, Meela didn't look like she had suffered as horribly as one could expect. From what she could recall, Aelendriel had never once seen Faelan torture or abuse her publicly. The succubus felt a bit of disgust looking at her, _'Now it all makes sense! Faelan must like her…I can't believe he's a filthy monkeigh lover!'_

Meanwhile back in the arena, Seiras ruthlessly and aggressively pursued a retreating Nelfaera now as she steadily backed away from him. The look in her eyes went from anger and pride to concern and disbelief as he showed no sign of weariness.

Nelfaera could hear many people in the audience laughing or booing at her inability to defeat Seiras. She grimaced in anger as she let out a loud whistle. A moment later, Seiras heard a loud screeching sound as some massive creature came charging across the battlefield towards him. He had no idea how it got in the arena and didn't really have time to give it much thought as it growled loudly.

He took one brief glance at it and realized it was some type of unknown warp beast monstrosity. The creature was quadrupedal and had a massive fanged mouth. It had some likeness to a canine, but that description didn't really do it justice.

The monster immediately came to flank Seiras as it attempted to kill him. This gave Nelfaera time to gain some distance as she ran for another skyboard parked a considerable distance away. Seiras didn't have time to pursue her as the massive beast attempted to knock him down.

With enhanced speed and power, he evaded its charge and ran beneath it as he sliced a huge gash through its underbelly. The creature howled in agony as he ran out from beneath its tail. Seiras was not surprised to see the wound immediately beginning to heal as the creature spun around and charged him again.

He growled in anger as he coiled the razorflail and slashed around the creature's neck. In an impossibly lucky move, he managed to leap onto the creature's back while doing this. Thinking fast, he wrapped as much of the blade around its neck as he could. The beast cried out in absolute agony as Seiras tightened his grip.

Pulling as hard as he could, he eventually beheaded the warp abomination causing it to slump over headless and dead. Seiras then looked at the razorflail for a brief moment, _'This weapon is remarkably useful for a xenos sword. I should take one on my escape out of Commorragh…assuming that's still a possibility.'_

Seiras turned towards Nelfaera's direction and was annoyed to see she was now on another skyboard fast approaching him. _'No wonder they compared her to a Hellion…she really likes those things.'_

With her flying platform, Nelfaera began to open fire with its splinter rounds. Seiras dove behind the dead warp beast to take cover as Nelfaera flew circles around him.

' _I can disarm her if she tries to parry the razorflail,'_ Seiras thought tactically as he dove out from cover and swung the weapon in random arcs.

Nelfaera evaded the first few swings, but she eventually was forced to parry Seiras' attack as he ran in closer and swung the razorflail at her legs. Her hellglaive hooked around the weapon and held it away which prevented Seiras from swinging it anymore.

He immediately took this opportunity to start pulling Nelfaera down as if it were a fishing lure. When she realized what he was doing, she tilted her skyboard down and started to open fire. A few splinter rounds grazed Seiras, but his black carapace had thankfully stopped them from causing deep wounds.

In their brief struggle, Nelfaera attempted to fly higher forcing Seiras to let go. She had no way of reacting in time as Seiras then tossed the Eldar power sword upward while holding her still with the razorflail. Had she been willing to let go of her hellglaive, she could have avoided it, but Nelfaera never saw it coming. The sword flew with remarkable speed as it embedded itself in one of the Syren's legs even through the armour on her thigh. She immediately lost her balance from the wound which allowed Seiras to rip the skyboard out of the air. He then spun around as hard and as strong as he could before retracting the razorflail and releasing it.

This caused Nelfaera to fall off the skyboard and the flying platform to go spinning out of control as it crashed into the audience and exploded.

Nelfaera quickly attempted to get up and shook off her pain as her combat stimulants kicked in again. She grimaced in euphoric pain as she pulled the power sword out of her leg causing her alien blood to gush out from it.

The wound was deep and bleeding heavily. She didn't have the chance to take care of it as Seiras came barreling after her immediately with the razorflail.

The two then engaged in another melee battle, but it only lasted for half a minute until Nelfaera stumbled. Taking advantage of her blood loss and weakened state, Seiras coiled the razorflail around her left arm after she missed him with a slower and feeble swing from her hellglaive.

Nelfaera had a face of absolute fear as Seiras retracted the blade with brutal force causing her arm to go flying off and onto the sands of the arena. Shiny red blood the colour of a ruby splattered over the sands as the Syren let out a cry of pain. Seiras always found it strange how shiny Eldar blood was, but that was likely due to the increased oxygen in it.

The audience let out an echoing and thunderous gasp when it became apparent that Seiras had won. Nelfaera grimaced in pain as she stared at her hellglaive which was now lying next to her amputated arm.

Seiras slowly walked after her with hatred in his eyes. He spoke loudly and angrily, "You enjoy dismembering people do you not? How does it feel to have it done to you, Eldar bitch?!"

Nelfaera still had a hydra gauntlet on her right arm and held it up defensively as he approached. Seiras was actually kind of surprised by her resolve. Most would immediately give up and try to flee after losing their dominant arm. She held her weapon up and stared him down briefly with fierce eyes.

" **Oh look, he beat Nelfaera…it's almost as if she actually didn't capture him with combat prowess,"** Aelendriel said smugly as she reveled in her rival's humiliation.

Renfaeda watched with disbelief, **"He wields that razorflail better than half the Lacerai in our cult. His superior strength makes it nearly impossible to disarm him with it either. Hellglaives are made for using superior strength and momentum. Nelfaera was massively disadvantaged fighting him with one. He has more reach, strength, and weight than her…plus he's fast. What was she thinking? She would have been better off using knives or just that hydra gauntlet. She severely underestimated the monkeigh. She might still have a chance with the hydra gauntlet, but that injury to her leg is going to slow her down a lot."**

" **Nelfaera's done for…"** Aelendriel said heartlessly without even trying to mask her enjoyment.

Faelan glanced at Aelendriel disapprovingly, **"Jump in and save her then. She's learned her lesson, and you certainly owe her, don't you?"**

" **What?! But the battle isn't over, Archon Faelan! The crowd won't approve and-"** Aelendriel didn't get to finish her statement as Faelan interrupted her.

" **Perhaps Mokaela would be a better opponent for him then since you're too afraid,"** Faelan said condescendingly.

Mokaela perked up eagerly, **"I would love to fight him. He's the most entertaining arena combatant I've seen since that ork warboss we captured."**

Aelendriel's eyes widened into fury, **"I'm not afraid, Archon! I'll kill him!"**

A moment later, Aelendriel picked up her archite glaive and dove off the pavilion into the arena. Renfaeda looked at her brother and chuckled, **"You have such a soft spot for Nelfaera…don't want her to die do you?"**

" **Less work for Melisara…"** Faelan deflected his sister's musings.

Nelfaera began to sway a bit as the blood loss was catching up to her. She quickly took advantage of Seiras' slow advance as she pulled something off her waist and poured it over her wounds causing the bleeding to stop immediately.

It caused her terrible pain as she actually let out a cry of agony. The audience found it hilarious as they laughed. Seiras felt time slow down even more as his heartbeats began to quicken to an extraordinary pace. Had he been a normal human, this likely would have put him into cardiac arrest.

He could barely hear and almost feel the whistling jab of a weapon as he swiftly side-stepped and avoided being impaled by Aelendriel from behind.

Nelfaera looked furious when she saw Aelendriel in the arena, **"What are you doing in here?! He's mine Aelendriel!"**

" **You're done, Nelfaera! Why don't you step back and let a real wych fight this space marine? You're embarrassing yourself out here!"** Aelendriel said haughtily.

 **"I'm still alive! So fuck off! You're not going to take my glory!"** Nelfaera hissed.

Aelendriel shook her head, **"Ironic considering that you tried to take mine…consider this a favor. I do owe you for saving my life after all don't I?"**

"I was wondering when you would show up," Seiras said distastefully as he glanced between the two wyches.

The audience began to erupt into excited cheers as the broadcast vid display showed a closeup of Aelendriel. The announcer quickly spoke with joy, **"Well, what a surprising turn of events! It would seem the gorgeous Succubus Aelendriel Raya has joined the battle!"**

"Nelfaera is actually better looking than you," Seiras said to the arrogant succubus as she posed for the audience.

This caused a massive low, "OOOHHH!" from the audience as Aelendriel's proud face immediately soured into hatred.

She spoke in gothic to him, "What did you just say?!"

"I thought about your question during my captivity, and it's obvious to me now. She's not as ugly as you are," Seiras taunted the succubus.

Many watchers in the audience that could understand gothic began to laugh and cheer at the insult which immediately infuriated Aelendriel. Nelfaera's furious expression was one of confusion as she stared intensely at Seiras with her remaining arm flexed. Seiras was actually surprised she had nothing to say for once.

Renfaeda narrowed her gaze curiously, **"What did he just say? Did he insult her beauty?"**

" **Cunning strategy…though I find it strange he would know how insulting that is to a wych. I wonder why he's trying to provoke Aelendriel though?"** Mokaela wondered.

" **She's a reckless and arrogant fighter, and he likely knows it. If he gets one hit on her, then she'll look like Nelfaera or worse,"** Renfaeda noted.

" **The space marine is right though…Nelfaera is prettier than Aelendriel,"** Maeralya spoke up.

Mokaela shook her head, **"I disagree. Aelendriel has a better figure and is much more feminine."**

" **Yeah, but Nelfaera has a better face, and her hair is so beautiful. Plus, have you even looked at her legs? They're perfect!"** Maeralya countered.

Renfaeda sighed, **"Save this argument for another time. I don't care to hear it."**

Seiras moved with deadly speed and precision as he fought off Aelendriel's charge. With the added combat stimulant, Seiras was able to match her speed as well much to the audience's astonishment.

Aelendriel was far less reckless and relentless than Nelfaera. She fought with focused precision, skillful movements, and intense pressure. She looked like she had learned from Nelfaera's mistakes and was trying to stab and slash Seiras between ghostly movements.

Having remembered her fighting style with the archite glaive, Seiras was prepared for all of her fancy and skillful execution attempts. Unfortunately, Instead of trying to parry his razorflail, she simply dodged or took cover whenever possible. She was being much more cautious this time around.

As for Nelfaera, she also rejoined the fray shortly after Seiras' initial clash with Aelendriel. Despite only having one arm and a hydra gauntlet, Nelfaera managed to cheap shot him with stabs and slashes as Seiras focused primarily on killing Aelendriel.

Even though she was wounded, Nelfaera was too elusive to actually finish off without focused effort. Seiras' few attempts to kill her had cost him as Aelendriel would always capitalize on it with a cheap shot of her own. This kept him from being able to kill either one of them, and after a few minutes of intense melee combat, he was beginning to realize that he would lose if he couldn't come up with a new plan quickly.

"Not so tough without your psychic powers now, are you?!" Aelendriel hissed with glee as she narrowly missed puncturing his throat with a series of lightning fast jabs.

Seiras swiftly countered with a wide arc of the razorflail, which caused Aelendriel to leap back. Unfortunately, this left him wide open as Nelfaera ran in from behind. Instead of blocking or dodging her attack, Seiras actually let Nelfaera stab him. The Syren had a face of euphoric excitement when she saw she had actually delivered a larger wound, but her pride was short lived when she realized the bladed gauntlet didn't puncture through all the way as it got stuck in his black carapace. She wrestled her arm urgently for a moment and quickly realized it was stuck. This was all the opportunity Seiras needed to spin around and cut her in half with the eldar power sword. This finally caused her hydra gauntlet to come out of his skin as well. It left a nasty wound, but he ignored it nonetheless.

The audience let out a thunderous gasp at the bloody attack as both of Nelfaera's legs were separated from her body. The Syren's golden eyes were filled with fear and disbelief as she was now missing three limbs. Seiras gripped his two weapons tightly in his hands as he looked down at her.

He spoke darkly with unfiltered hatred, "Not so proud now are you, alien?! I hope this forever reminds you of your place in comparison to mine!"

Those words seemed to alarm Nelfaera greatly. She looked over at Aelendriel expecting her help, but the succubus didn't move as she maintained a safe distance from Seiras.

" **Look at that, the space marine cut Nelfaera in half! Can Aelendriel take him down now? This is one dangerous monkeigh!"** the announcer spoke excitedly.

"Your Emperor can't save you from Commorragh space mar-" Nelfaera never got a chance to finish her sentence as Seiras began to brutally and sadistically hack her body apart for almost a full minute. The audience was going crazy during this entire grotesque mutilation of her corpse. Some were actually cheering for it which was very bizarre. Many were booing, and others were chanting for Aelendriel to kill him.

Melisara watched the scene with beaming eyes of approval, **"Beautiful. A bit quick for my liking, but no less brutal and savage. He's a killing machine…a true work of art."**

" **How long is he going to hack her corpse apart?!"** Maeralya asked seriously.

Faelan looked somewhat serious as he turned towards Mokaela, **"If he kills Aelendriel, you're up."**

" **I don't want to wish death upon her, but I'd love to fight him!"** Mokaela smiled evilly, **"he's amazing."**

" **You doubt Aelendriel?"** Maeralya asked Faelan.

The archon nodded, **"Yes, I do. He knows her movements by the look of it. Many of his movements are pre-anticipated before Aelendriel actually moves. He remembers her fighting style perfectly from what I can see, and he memorized her combat movements. I have no doubts she's realized it…that's probably why she's not attacking him at the moment."**

Seiras was only drawn from this brutal and unsightly fury when Aelendriel attempted to blindside him with a glaive sweep. He easily parried it and coiled the razorflail around the glaive. Seeing where this was going, Aelendriel dropped the weapon and dove to safety as she barely avoided Seiras' offhand weapon almost cutting her head off.

The Succubus now deprived of her archite glaive pulled out two daggers that were holstered to her armoured legs.

"Don't get so full of yourself, Seiras! Nelfaera's an amateur compared to me! I'm going to butcher you!" Aelendriel shouted proudly causing the audience to explode into more cheers.

' _Daggers…those will be difficult to counter at close range,'_ Seiras thought strategically as he jabbed the eldar power sword into the dirt. He then picked up the archite glaive with one hand and gave Aelendriel a blank glare, "I hope you don't need this anymore."

She could only watch as Seiras tossed the archite glaive a tremendous distance. To the audience's amazement, it embedded itself in the quadruple amputee human that Nelfaera had strung up earlier. The man quickly died from the attack, but Seiras was glad to end the man's suffering.

Seiras could feel the hydra gauntlet wound on his side burning uncomfortably. He had no doubt it was poison affecting him, but hopefully his extra kidney could filter it out. His two hearts began to pump extraordinarily fast as he began to twitch almost uncontrollably. He swiftly picked up the Eldar sword again a moment later.

With lightning fast speed, Seiras ran in the opposite direction of Aelendriel, much to the Succubus' surprise. She swiftly chased after him with her daggers in hand. She slowly managed to catch up to him as the two charged across the battlefield. Aelendriel tried to attack him several times during this chase but wasn't very successful.

"Why are you running away now, monkeigh?!" Aelendriel demanded.

Her question was immediately answered when she saw Seiras pick up a plasma grenade off the ground. As she reached him, he spun around and nearly bisected Aelendriel with the razorflail, but she easily dodged it. She was surprised to see Seiras throw down the plasma grenade a moment later.

She stood a safe distance away and waited for the dust cloud it had created to pass. To her surprise, Seiras didn't try to take advantage of the cover to attack. She shook her head at him and laughed, "What the hell was the point of tha-"

Her question was instantly answered as an explosion went off beneath her causing Aelendriel to go flying off her feet. She couldn't believe it as she quickly attempted to regain her bearings. "When did you throw a second one?!" the succubus demanded angrily

Burns now covered part of her body, but she looked no less spry as she avoided his follow-up attacks. She successfully administered several deep cuts during their following melee exchange, but was horrified after Seiras unexpectedly dropped both of his weapons and grabbed her wrists out of nowhere.

He squeezed her forearms as hard as possible causing the wych to cry out in absolute agony. Both daggers dropped out of her hands as Seiras swiftly headbutted her a second later and then stomped on one of her feet. Blood gushed from her face and several teeth fell out of her mouth from the tremendous force of the attack. Her foot was no doubt broken now as well. Seiras' forehead was lightly bleeding from the headbutt but he paid it no mind as he followed up by kneeing Aelendriel repeatedly in the stomach.

" **It looks like the beautiful Aelendriel is in trouble now!"** the announcer shouted excitedly.

Many of her bones were now broken as she slumped over in painful defeat. Before she could hit the ground, Seiras held her off the ground with one arm. He then delivered a powerful punch to her gut causing blood to spew out of her mouth and all over his face. This had undoubtedly caused internal bleeding.

The audience watched with raw anticipation as they desperately wanted to know how Seiras was going to finish her off. To the surprise of many, Seiras didn't kill her right away. Similar to how he killed the human overseer in the slave chamber, Seiras began to stomp on Aelendriel's limbs causing her to cry pathetically.

" **The monkeigh is just playing with her now! It looks like the end for the beautiful succubus!"** the announcer stated the obvious with a cheerful voice.

The audience had immediately betrayed their favor for the succubus and were laughing at her now as Seiras tortured her with blunt trauma. After shattering the bones in her limbs, he picked her up off the ground and held her up facing the pavilion where the Archon's retinue was sitting.

Seiras followed up by biting Aelendriel's ear off and throwing her back to the ground. Many of the audience viewers let out a cringey sound as Seiras chewed the ear and swallowed it. The audience then let out an echoing gasp as Seiras spotted another grenade and picked it up off the ground.

He walked over towards Aelendriel and picked her up again. He held her mouth open as he put the explosive inside. With a swift uppercut, he broke her jaw shut and sent her flying back as the grenade blew her head off.

The sheer style behind the kill had actually caused some of the audience to cheer. Seiras doubted they were actually cheering for him, but rather the brutality in which he killed Aelendriel.

" **What a stylish kill! This is unprecedented! The Space Marine defeated Aelendriel too?! Who's brave enough to fight this beast now?!"** the announcer shouted.

His question was answered as Mokaela dove off the Archon's pavilion. The announcer was full on ecstatic as the hype of the situation had escalated dramatically, **"What's this?! Mokaela is gracing the battlefield?! My lords and ladies, the glorious spectacles of the Cult of Eternal Night never end! Give it up for Mokaela Shanurae!"**

The crowd went nuts as they began to chant her name loudly, **"Mokaela! Mokaela! Mokaela!"**

Seiras stared the succubus down and sighed, _'Nelfaera was right…even if I win, they'll just keep sending them in. I don't even know if I can kill her or Renfaeda. I have no idea what either one of them can do. This wych mentioned her father was a harlequin. I might as well expect her to fight like one of those vile clown jesters.'_

Mokaela clapped her hands for Seiras as she eagerly ran up to him peppily, "Bravo! Bravo! You're the best arena combatant we've had in ages! I'm truly impressed and excited that I get to fight such a great opponent!"

"You won't be feeling that way when this is over. I'll show you what I did to those Cult of Strife wyches firsthand," Seiras threatened her.

The succubus' happy smile went to a psychopathic bloodthirsty one a split second later, "Let's fight then!"

To Seiras' complete dread, Mokaela was wielding two dark eldar power swords. They were unique and beautifully crafted. She noticed Seiras' examination of her swords and spoke proudly, "You like these? Daddy gave them to me."

' _Harlequin swords…damn. She's going to be really hard to kill,'_ Seiras thought seriously.

He was surprised that Mokaela didn't move as he reached down to pick up the Eldar power sword and razorflail again. She patiently waited for him to do so much to his surprise.

A split second later, she was already flurrying around him with ridiculous speed. She was much faster than Aelendriel and Nelfaera and was literally impossible to outmaneuver.

Even when Seiras could push her or parry her sword swings, she just simply flowed around him like wind. Seiras tried kicking dirt at her multiple times, but she effortlessly avoided it.

They fought for a good few minutes with no remarkable progress on either end, but Seiras eventually lost sight of her which was all Mokaela needed as she ran in from behind and impaled him with one of her swords. It pierced all the way through his body causing some major damage.

She followed up by wrapping around him and sitting atop his shoulders. Seiras grimaced in pain as Mokaela tenderly scratched the top of his head, "Never lose sight of an opponent!"

Seiras couldn't do anything as she followed up with a graceful slash down his frontside during her dismount. He fell over on his face a moment later as blood gushed from his wounds and both weapons dropped from his hands. Mokaela shook her head sadly, "What a shame…I thought you would put up a better fight."

He tried reaching for the sword, but Mokaela kicked it away before crucifying his arm into the ground. The librarian had thankfully collapsed over one of Aelendriel's daggers however and was able to reach up and barely counter Mokaela's killing blow with it. He swiftly threw it at her at close range causing her to jump away and dodge.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Seiras swiftly pulled the sword out of his arm and threw it away depriving Mokaela of one of her weapons. She twirled her remaining sword around wildly as she spun around coming in for another charge.

Seiras didn't pick up any weapon at all as she charged much to her surprise. Instead, he managed to grab her hair after a lucky duck from her sword. Mokaela let out a shriek as Seiras held her still for a moment before delivering a hard side kick to the back of her leg. Her leg was now caught on his thanks to the spikes on her leg armour.

While this was incredibly painful for Seiras, it prevented Mokaela from moving anymore. With his superior size and strength, he immediately tried to pin her to the ground. She writhed wildly as he ripped the sword out of her hand and boomerang tossed it away.

Mokaela desperately elbowed Seiras with a blade on her forearm armour and swiftly tried to get out of his grip. Seiras immediately let her go mid struggle causing her to stumble forward and briefly lose her balance.

She quickly dove for the other dagger on the ground and managed to turn around fast enough to stab it at Seiras.

He redirected her attack mid stab which caused it to miss his chest and go into his shoulder. With a graceful backflip, she retrieved the dagger out of his shoulder before throwing it at him as he came running after her again. The dagger hit him in chest causing Seiras to immediately stagger mid run and fall over. He could hear Mokaela let out a sigh of relief as he remained still and pretended to be dying.

' _There's only one way I can take her out now…deception. She barely missed my hearts. I wouldn't doubt if she thought she hit one. I have one more chance at this. Emperor give me fortune,'_ Seiras prayed silently to himself as he remained lying on the ground.

Mokaela wasted no time picking up the nearby razorflail as she walked over towards him to finish him off.

"Good fight, Seiras…but I win," Mokaela laughed as she posed proudly for the excited audience.

The very brief moment her eyes took in their reaction, Seiras seized his chance and leapt up with unbelievable speed. Mokaela could do nothing as Seiras tackled her to the ground and pinned all four of her limbs beneath his own.

"Didn't you tell me never to take your eyes off an opponent…ironic. Here's how I killed the last succubus I fought in Kaurava! I held her down and I crushed her skull like this!" Seiras stated coldly as he held Mokaela down. He then moved both hands over her head and began to squeeze it as hard as possible. Mokaela let out a shriek of agony before Seiras crushed her skull completely.

After she was dead, he got back up and took a deep breath, _'I don't know how much more of this I can take. This dagger wound went through my black carapace.'_

 **"Unbelievable! Unthinkable! This is abhorrent! Abyssmal! A monkeigh bested Mokaela too!? This is an unprecedented day indeed!"** the announcer shouted.

The audience began to boo extremely loudly and unhappily at Seiras' victory. He looked around at the displeased Drukhari before shouting loudly, "Are you not entertained?! Are you not entertained?! Is that not why you were here?!"

The booing went to dead silence a moment later as the audience wasn't sure what was supposed to happen now.

 **"Wow! I can't believe he beat Mokaela too! Just how skilled is that monkeigh?!"** Maeralya gawked.

 **"Mokaela's only ever lost once…and that was to me. I'm shocked,"** Renfaeda said shaking her head.

Faelan seemed interested as he stared at Seiras intensely, **"Even without psychic powers, armour, or his own weapons he was able to best two succubi and a syren? What do you make of that, Melisara?"**

 **"I must say, the monkeigh has certainly earned my approval. What an entertaining battle,"** Melisara responded.

 **"I should go kill him before the crowd starts a riot,"** Renfaeda said with a calm tone as she picked up a single dagger and jumped into the arena.

 **"After she kills him, go retrieve that space marine's body and resurrect him, Melisara. I have uses for him,"** Faelan commanded.

 **"As you say, Faelan. I will gladly do so. Do you want me to resurrect Nelfaera, Aelendriel, and Mokaela as well?"** she asked.

Faelan nodded, **"Yes, but make sure you save the space marine first. He's a psyker and if he's dead for too long, he'll be swallowed by the warp."**

 **"I'm well aware of that,"** Melisara said casually.

Maeralya looked at Faelan curiously, **"What are your plans for the space marine, my love?"**

 **"You'll see, my dear…"** he said with a wicked smile.

Down in the arena, Seiras heard the audience crying out in ecstasy when they saw Renfaeda had finally come down.

 **"No way! The succubus queen herself is here! Ladies and gentlemen, we are in for a treat of a lifetime! Behold Renfaeda Aeshul"** the announcer shouted.

 _'I don't think I can beat her. I'm too wounded, and she's too fast,'_ Seiras thought calmly as he stared her down.

Without any words or bravado, Renfaeda bolted across the battlefield faster than anything Seiras had ever seen. With one swift leap, she avoided his futile swing and pierced his heart with her single dagger causing him to go falling to the ground on his back.

Deafening cheers filled the stadium of the arena as Renfaeda straddled the dying space marine and twisted her dagger into his main heart.

"I would have preferred to fight you fresh, but you can't be allowed to win here…it would ruin my cult's reputation. Still…commendable effort, nonetheless. I find you admirable for a monkeigh," Renfaeda whispered quietly so the broadcast couldn't pick it up and only he could hear it.

' _Is this the end?'_ Seiras thought to himself as his vision began to fade. The last thing he saw before losing consciousness was Renfaeda's sinister blue eyes.

" **Amazing! Spectacular! Perfect and unrivaled! The Succubus Queen took him down in one attack! I guess it stands to reason why the Lady Renfaeda is so esteemed! Give it up for the Cult of Eternal Night for putting on such an amazing show tonight!"** The announcer ranted joyously as Renfaeda began to walk away.

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Alright guys, there's the arena battle I've been hyping up for months now. A lot of serious shit went down this chapter and I left a ton of subtle clues about various characters and their secret motives/etc.

Kaerith is actually a black sheep among the bloodbrides according to her own testimony. She proved it by helping Seiras to get revenge against Nelfaera and Aelendriel, but how different is she really? Can she be trusted, or was she just using him?

We also got the introduction of Mokaela in this chapter as well. Her dad is a harlequin, and she's pretty much the dark eldar equivalent of a manic pixie yandere. How will she handle her loss to Seiras after being brought back to life?

Aelendriel and Nelfaera both got their asses kicked and were murdered in humiliating ways. They'll both want revenge for Seiras tarnishing their reputations, but how will they get it? What are Faelan's future plans for Seiras? We also got some insight into Faelan and his pet null. A mute woman with red hair…hmmm, what could she be? Questions are everywhere...keep reading if you want to know more.

With all those musings aside, I hope you guys enjoyed the brutality and gore of the battles. Seiras' success and brutality in the arena is going to earn him a few fans within Commorragh. At any rate, thanks to everyone who faved/followed/reviewed up until now. It's nice to get some reassurance as I trudge along through this heretical story. Stay tuned for the next chapter! It's got surprises in it…


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: A Dark Bargain**

 **Seiras, The Warp**

It is said that one's life will flash before their eyes right before they die. This was true in a way as Seiras saw the entirety of his life all over again during his fading moments. In his final moments of life his memories lingered back to Calderis when he was only 14 years old.

He was currently following a large hunting party of about two hundred men through a dune sea along an oasis river path. All of them were garbed as desert warriors with lightweight armour. Each warrior carried a spear and an autogun assault rifle.

The leader gave a few silent gestures as the group stopped and looked down over a dangerous sight. In an abandoned village near the oasis river, they saw a large gathering of greenskin orks salvaging the place and crudely interacting with each other in boredom.

The leader of the warriors turned back and faced everyone, "The scouts said there were orks, but I wasn't expecting this many. The greenskins are encroaching closer to Alaseirian. We have to wipe out this gathering immediately or they'll start another Waaaagh."

"Kiris, are you sure about this? There're nearly a hundred green skins down there by my estimate. A few of them look really big too," one of the men expressed understandable concern.

Kiris nodded at him, "I want two men per ork down there. Try not to get caught in one on one battles…these monsters are way stronger than us and they're extremely difficult to kill. We should also set up an ambush. I want at least a third of our men waiting behind these trees and the primary force to draw them out of the village and closer to the river. We'll pincer them between two sides. I want the ambush group to focus your autoguns on killing as many as you can. I'll lead the forward party and lure them in closer," he continued.

After issuing several more orders and setting up the ambush, Seiras walked up towards the man, "Where do you want me father?"

"You should stay back with the ambush group in cover," he said sternly.

Seiras shook his head disapprovingly, "What?! But I thought I was coming with you!"

"You're just a boy still, Seiras…you've never killed greenskins before. They don't die easily, and I don't want to risk you getting killed before you've had time to learn. You should stay back and learn as much as you can. I expect a lot of casualties in this battle," his father said sternly.

The boy glared angrily, "I'm not afraid, father. How am I supposed to become a great warrior like you if I'm hiding in the back like some woman?!"

His father quickly backhanded him strongly, "You're going to lead one day my son, but first you have to learn how to follow! I will not risk your life unnecessarily over some vain wish for glory. You're not superhuman and neither am I! One mistake can cost your life!"

"The men won't respect me if I'm not on the front lines!" Seiras said seriously as he rubbed his cheek.

After a short pause, Kiris sighed heavily, "This isn't like the bandits we killed or the beasts we hunted Seiras…greenskins are dangerous monsters. I've seen one rip a man in half with its bare hands. Another one cut your uncle's leg off with an axe. What would your mother say if I came back home and you were dead? I brought you here to teach you…I can't do that if you're recklessly putting yourself in harm's way."

"Didn't you start fighting greenskins at my age? Uncle Kamran tells me the stories all the time of how you both killed hundreds. Why are you holding me back?" the boy countered.

Kiris gritted his teeth, "The only reason Kamran and I killed that many orks is because they murdered your grandfather and half the warriors in our village! Do you know how many widows are in our tribe, Seiras?! There's no glory in war or battle. We're fighting for survival. Do you think I enjoy fighting? I don't. I want a better life for you and your sisters…one where you don't have to be afraid of monsters attacking us every night. I make the warrior's sacrifice so others don't have to. You shouldn't live your life trying to be like me son or you'll end up dead like your cousins. Your uncle is a bitter man who suffers greatly. All three of his sons were killed by greenskins because he filled their heads with delusions of glory. There's always going to be someone to fight, Seiras…if you go looking for battle you will find it."

"The monsters aren't just going to go away unless someone kills them! Uncle Kamran tells me it's my responsibility to shoulder that burden when you are both gone. You can't protect me forever, father! I'm willing to make the warrior's sacrifice too! How will I be ready to lead if I don't have any real experience?!" Seiras spoke strongly. His father seemed somewhat receptive to his words and sighed heavily.

"Your uncle has placed his hope for the future of our tribe in your hands…you will lead one day. There will be plenty of more battles for you to fight." Kiris' voice trailed off.

Seiras shook his head, "There's a battle to fight right now…and we're both here. How many more will it take before you give me a chance?"

"I'll let you come with me so long as you remain close and don't do anything foolish. If I tell you to fall back, then you better listen. Is that understood, boy?" Kiris replied seriously.

"Yes father!" Seiras replied eagerly.

"Come, the men are waiting," Kiris sighed again.

The father and son quickly made their way towards the men. Many were surprised when they saw Seiras there.

One man even asked about it, "You're bringing your son to the front, Kiris?"

"He insisted on it," Kiris nodded.

Several of the warriors nodded in silence. One quickly put a hand on his shoulder and chuckled, "You'll make a proper warrior yet, boy."

"He's brave, like his father," another added approvingly. Seiras felt a bit of pride when he saw the look of approval in some of their eyes.

Kiris didn't pay it any mind as he got serious again, "Follow me, we're going to sneak around the village."

This memory progressed for several hours as the Calderis warriors strategically took out the greenskins infesting the abandoned village. When victory seemed all but assured, the warriors surrounded the greenskins and slaughtered them down to the last in the village outskirts. Their victory was short-lived unfortunately as a massive, thundering sound caught their attention.

Over the horizon, they could see dozens of more orks coming in. To their utter horror it was being led by an ork nob. He was heavily armoured with scrap metal unlike the others and looked much larger than any ork Seiras had seen thus far.

"We've got more coming in! Take them out men! Focus your attacks on the big one! Kill their leader and the orks will scatter!" Kiris commanded.

With courage, the surviving men charged against the newly arrived greenskins. A bloody battle ensued for several minutes as dozens died on both sides. The massive ork nob was killing men left and right, and before long, Seiras found himself and his father in front of the monster.

"Ahahaha! Oi Looky Ere! The humie leada! You're gonna pay for killin all my boyz! WAAAGGGHHH!" the nob shouted in crude low gothic as it furiously battled against Seiras' father.

Despite his best efforts, Kiris was only a mortal man, and against a two and a half meter tall ork, he couldn't do much to stop him. Seiras ruthlessly emptied his entire autogun's magazine into the ork nob, but it proved almost ineffective as the beast shrugged it off.

"Seiras, run! I'll hold him off!" Kiris shouted towards his son

"I'm not leaving you, father!" Seiras shouted emotionally as he stood shaking in fear at the ork.

He could only stand there frozen in fear as his father attempted to stab the ork multiple times with his spear. While successful, these wounds couldn't do much to stop the creature.

The nob laughed as he ripped the spear out of Kiris' grip and snapped it in half. A moment later he threw the man to the ground and shook his head, "Not so tough are ya humie?! You can't hurt me with your pointy stick! I'm gonna cut ya in half with me choppa!"

Kiris looked over at Seiras and shouted again, "Get out of here, son! Run to our fallback point! Damn it, move!"

The ork had a massive axe as he walked over to Seiras' dad and was about to swing it down. To Kiris' surprise and the Nob's, Seiras found his courage and charged in. With feeble might but strong determination, he stabbed the ork leader with his own spear.

"Youz a brave young humie aren't chya?! You're gonna regret that!" the nob shouted angrily as he swung the axe as hard as possible nearly cutting Seiras in half as he ducked.

"I'm getting bored of dis! Time to die so I can get back to me proppa WAAAGH!" the nob shouted as he swung the axe down on Kiris again.

"NOOOOO!" Seiras shouted as loudly and emotionally as he tried to intercept the kill.

A moment later, the unbelievable happened as the ork nob got sent flying backwards off his feet and to the ground.

He seemed to quickly recover but noticed Seiras was now glowing. Crackles of lightning surged over his body as he stood there in shock.

"ARRGHHH!" Seiras screamed loudly as he felt an unbearable and agonizing burn filling his mind and his very soul.

The ork nob immediately came in for the kill again, but he only made it halfway before a streak of lightning shot out of Seiras' hands and into the nob's body. The greenskin brute was electrocuted brutally by the attack and eventually caught on fire before falling over in a smoldering dead heap of flesh.

"Dey got da boss! Let's get outta here!" one of the nearby orks shouted to the others. This seemed to end the battle outright as the orks now began to disperse with relentless haste leaving the survivors relieved. Everyone present immediately made their way over towards Seiras and were staring at him with widened, disbelieving eyes.

His body's glowing died down a moment later and the terrible pain eventually faded as well. Seiras stood there shaking with residual psychic power; he was completely confused as the surrounding men gawked in silence.

Seiras heard his father's voice a moment later speaking with absolute shock, "You're a shaman my son…"

"What?! But I thought only girls could be shamans!?" Seiras said disbelievingly as she looked over at the dead ork nob as fresh proof of what just happened.

"He's a chosen one…touched by the heavens," Seiras heard a nearby man exclaim.

All of the surrounding warriors immediately knelt to him which was very odd considering Seiras was only a 14-year-old boy.

"Hail the Son of Heaven!" someone spoke in an almost religious reverence.

Seiras looked at his father confused, "Why is everyone bowing to me, father?"

"You're a male shaman…" Kiris said softly as if he himself couldn't believe it.

"I am?! What does that mean?" Seiras asked uncertainly.

The man looked over the others seriously, "We need to return home immediately! The shamans need to know of this! Salvage what you can from the village and let's move out!"

After a long and very awkward trip, Seiras and the surviving warriors all returned to their home village-city. Seiras walked alongside his father up front and wasn't sure what to think as they came through the gates of their rocky oasis fortress village.

The villagers that caught sight of their return were all happy to see that they returned and followed behind them as they arrived at the temple. Nearly two thousand people were crowded around the center of the village-city as they watched curiously at what was happening.

Seiras' uncle Kamran, the Shah of Alaseirian walked up to the returning warriors with anxious eyes. The man was crippled and was missing a leg, but he walked with a prosthetic and a staff of some kind. Everyone stopped speaking as the man raised his hand to address the warriors.

He looked at Kiris proudly, "Kiris, my brother, I take it your battle was successful?"

"Yes, but at heavy cost. We lost dozens of men to those monsters," Kiris said solemnly.

"They are with the God-Emperor now. We will perform a funeral ceremony for them tonight in honour of their sacrifice. The shamans spoke of a great victory today. My wife told me that the God-Emperor would send us fortune. I am pleased to see that she was correct." Kamran announced.

Kiris bowed his head respectfully to his older brother before speaking, "The God-Emperor blessed us with more than a just a victory, Kamran. My son Seiras is a shaman…he killed the ork leader with magic."

The surrounding crowd erupted into amazement as everyone began to speak to one another about the event. Kamran's bitter eyes were filled with awe as he looked at his nephew, "He is?!"

"He killed an ork nob with the light of heaven, Shah!" another man announced with reverence.

Seiras felt somewhat uncomfortable from everyone's gaze as his uncle walked over towards him. The man placed a hand proudly on Seiras' shoulder, "You are touched by the God-Emperor of Mankind, my nephew. This is remarkable…we haven't had a male shaman in nearly three hundred years."

"Uncle Kamran…I-" Seiras didn't know what to say.

"Ever since the death of my own sons, my faith had waivered in the God-Emperor's great plan…but now that faith has been restored! The heavens have sent to us a messiah!" his uncle announced strongly with pride.

Seiras had no idea how to take in everyone's reactions as they began to bow to him. Moments later, the village shamans exited the temple and approached Seiras. There were five of them in total. Among them included his mother, his aunt, his older sister, his youngest sister, and another unrelated shaman who was very old.

"The spirits have spoken true…a messiah has come," the eldest unrelated shaman spoke as she walked over towards them.

Seiras' aunt and mother both looked over the boy with amazement. His aunt placed her hand on his head as she closed her eyes, "I sense a great power within him."

"Aunt Mitra, mother…what am I supposed to do?" Seiras asked desperately concerned.

His mother embraced him in a tight hug as she spoke fondly, "Calm yourself son. Spiritual magic comes from your emotions and your will. We will train you in the ways of Shamanism."

The memory continued onward for a while as Seiras accepted his new role as the messiah of his tribe. It was a night and day difference compared to the way things were before. Instead of looking at him with respect and admiration, the people practically worshipped him and went out of their way to do things to earn his favor.

Despite the fame it brought him, Seiras felt truly alone from his newfound reverence. All of the children his own age wouldn't even speak to him anymore with anything other than deific praise. A normal person might have enjoyed this type of thing, and Seiras certainly did for a while, but it quickly began to burden and isolate him.

Everyone now expected even more from him than before…and what was saying something. In addition to his father and uncle's intensive leadership and warrior training, Seiras was also forced to learn the ways of shamanism from his mother and the other shamans.

Two of his four sisters were also shamans, and in the few months since becoming a shaman, Seiras had grown to understand the hardships they faced with having magic. The older women were particularly adamant in giving him extra training due to his stronger psychic powers. While none of the women ever admitted it to him, Seiras had a feeling he was more powerful than they were due to the astronomical rate at which he had developed his powers. He had done in half a year what took most of them over a decade to learn. His aunt Mitra had described his 'spiritual presence' as a beacon of light, but his mother had grown increasingly patronizing and restrictive in teaching him the more powerful he became.

At first, Seiras thought it was perhaps a means to humble him, but that was far from the truth. In reality it was because his mother was worried about powerful spirits attaching themselves to him. She never fully explained the true horror behind this concept, and he was forced to learn it from the oldest shaman in the village. She was a woman named Kaluka.

Kaluka had been the one to teach Seiras about daemons and the dangers of misusing magic. The old woman was the wisest of the shamans and was the one most experienced in divination and prophecies. Seiras would often defer to her over anyone else due to the cryptic and harsh truths she would teach him.

The wise crone was the only person Seiras actually trusted to share his visions with as she was not as patronizing or overbearing as his mother was. She was also the only shaman that would admit to Seiras that he was way more powerful than she was.

Many dreams had plagued him in the passing months, particularly one of a raven. He had been having the dream every night for the past week and had finally thought to mention it to Kaluka.

Walking into the village's temple in search of her, he was greeted by his youngest sister Leila, "Big brother, watch this!"

Seiras watched curiously as his ten-year-old sister held up her hands and caused an illuminated glow to come off of them. She was beaming with excitement.

"Nice, when did you learn how to do that?" he asked curiously.

"Shirin taught me! Isn't it amazing? Now I don't need a torch at night!" the girl said proudly.

Seiras smiled at his youngest sister, "Maybe you could teach it to me then. I don't know that spell yet."

"Really?! I'd love to!" she chirped with excitement. Of Seiras' four sisters, his youngest sister Leila was the one that liked him the most.

She had grown to enjoy the recent bond they both shared from being magical, but even despite that, the two of them had always been close. Leila was also his favorite of the four sisters. She was always optimistic, reassuring, and humble. She was the complete opposite of his older sister Shirin.

Samira was the second youngest of the girls. She and Seiras were very different personality wise, but they got along well enough. Samira was often very quiet, but she had an interest in technology and engineering more than anyone else in the village. She had a great love for sculpting as well.

Setara was the third youngest, and the complete middle child of the family. She had no special psychic powers like Seiras, Shirin, or Leila, and wasn't particularly intelligent and gifted like Samira. Setara was however blessed with one boon, and that was her beauty. Ironically enough, she and Seiras bore the most resemblance to each other. Setara wasn't close to any of her sisters and only liked her brother and a few of their cousins. In Seiras' opinion, she was a bit of a diva and loved drama.

She was only a year younger than Seiras and had often tried to join in on whatever her brother was doing. Unfortunately for her, their father didn't like the idea of a pretty young girl being out in the desert at the mercy of desperate men or monsters. Because of this, she had a classic attention-seeking complex and would often do reckless things for recognition. She craved her father and brother's acknowledgement above all else, but typically only got it from the latter. Ever since he had become psychic, Setara had barely spoken to him. Seiras couldn't help but sense a bit of resentment from her.

Shirin was the only one of Seiras' four sisters that was older than him, and she always held that over his head whenever she could. Before he had developed psychic powers of his own, his sister was very arrogant and condescending to him and had often treated him like a fool. Unlike his youngest sister, Leila, he did not have a good relationship with Shirin. She was the stoic prodigy of the family and was extremely arrogant. Seiras never understood why they didn't get along, but things only got worse after he became psychic.

It was a sad reality that Seiras' newfound gifts and fame had completely eclipsed his sisters. He could sense a bit of envy from some of them…particularly Shirin and Setara. Nevertheless, he was thankful that Leila and Samira still treated him normally.

The quality time with Leila was short lived as Shirin walked up a moment later with a sour look on her face, "You overslept, little brother…the sun is already up."

"Sorry, Shirin, I was tired from the training dad and I did yesterday, and I was having some unusual dream…" Seiras trailed off.

"That's no excuse. You'll never be good at magic at this rate," she said with a condescending smirk.

"Mother and Aunt Mitra both said Seiras is really good at magic though," Leila defended her older brother.

"I've been training since I was eight! I'm leagues above you! I wake up early every day before the sun rises, and I study far more than he does!" she said strongly.

Seiras shrugged, "So? I also train with dad all the time and lead the men. It's hard to prioritize shaman studies and warrior duties. You don't really get out much, so you wouldn't understand."

Shirin huffed at him with childish arrogance, "Oh well excuse me for doubting the 'great messiah!' Ever since you got magic, mother's been ignoring me and focusing on training you instead! It's bad enough you already stole dad from me…now you've got mom and aunt Mitra treating you like you're so special! Everyone else is just invisible when you're around."

"It sounds like you're just jealous, Shirin. I didn't ask for this to happen…but dad and I would both be dead if it didn't. I don't know why you feel so threatened…" Seiras countered with an annoyed glare.

"As if I could be jealous of you! I'm stronger than you are!" she boasted.

Seiras cracked a fist at her, "You want to bet on that?"

"As a matter of fact, I do!" Shirin hissed as she psychically tossed her brother back against a wall.

She attempted to hold him down with psychic force, but Seiras immediately countered with his own power. He didn't take long to break out of her hold as he fired his own blast of psychic force at her.

Their situations were quickly reversed as Seiras telekinetically sent his 16-year-old sister flying against the wall. She cried out in pain from the attack, but angrily got back up and tried to battle him.

"Guys, don't fight!" Leila tried to protest as she got in the crossfire. She was sent to the ground a moment later as the two more powerful psychics easily threw her aside.

"You're not better than me just because you're a boy!" Shirin hissed angrily at him as the two began to toss things or psychically overpower the other.

Seiras spoke seriously, "You've always thought you were better than me, and now that I have magic too, you're afraid that I actually am better than you!"

"You're not!" Shirin hissed as she threw a bolt of fire at him.

The boy narrowly dodged it and looked shocked by the display as it set fire to several surrounding pieces of furniture. Seiras shook his head urgently, "Are you trying to kill me?!"

"If you're so great, then you shouldn't be afraid of a little fire now hmm?" Shirin said sadistically as she threw several more bolts of flame.

Unsure of how to dodge them all in succession, Seiras just held up his psychic force to push them back. Not only did this completely deflect the fireballs, but one even backfired towards Shirin. She countered by mimicking his previous actions and grounding the spell.

"Seiras, Shirin! Please stop!" Leila cried out as her two oldest siblings continued.

Another brief force exchange occurred before Seiras easily overwhelmed his sister's defenses and sent her flying to the ground. This also sent Leila flying back as well as the glass windows in the temple all shattered.

Seiras' eyes then began to glow as he could no longer contain his warp power. Lightning streaked dangerously across his fingers as the building around them began to shake. Unable to stop his power, Seiras watched with horror as nearly electrocuted his sisters in a tempest of psychic energy.

He had thankfully missed them when he realized he was losing control, but in the process, he had destroyed over half the temple. Quickly regaining control, he telekinetically negated the collapsing rooftop from falling on his sisters.

Moments later many villagers ran over to the scene of the commotion. Among them were his mother, his aunt, and his uncle. His mother spoke up with fear, "What happened?! Was the temple attacked?!"

Seiras paid them no mind as he saw Leila was crying. His mother quickly ran over to comfort the young girl and reminded her to maintain emotional stability.

Shirin was still lying on the ground and looked slightly injured from the blunt trauma of Seiras' last attack. The girl was also crying but was more silent about it than Leila. Seiras walked over to his older sister and immediately tried to reach down to help her.

She venomously slapped his hand away and gave him a look of bitter anger, "Don't touch me!"

"I'm sorry, Shirin…I didn't mean to do tha-" he never got to finish his sentence as his sister interrupted him.

"I don't care! I hate you!" she shouted.

He gave her a blank and somewhat sad look as he didn't know what to say. Shirin sat up a moment later and began to rant, "You were right after all! You are stronger than me! Good for you! We're all so beneath the perfect son! If you're so great, then why don't you just go away! You're obviously too good to be around us mere mortals!"

"Shirin, Seiras, what happened?" their mother asked concerned.

Shirin completely ignored their mother as she continued ranting, "All I ever hear every day is how special and amazing you are! If you're so great, then why don't you just go to heaven and be with the God-Emperor already?!"

Seiras looked at her solemnly, "That's what you want huh? For me to just go away?"

"Did you two get into a fight?" Seiras' uncle asked a moment later as he came over to the scene.

"Seiras, what happened?" his mother asked him.

The boy said nothing as he simply began to run away as fast as he could. Nobody was fast enough to catch him as Seiras avoided all contact and went to the village wall to look out over the dune sea on the horizon.

He sat there for hours reflecting on his sister's harsh words. He had no idea what to do or think as he sat alone in emotional silence. Eventually, he closed his eyes and started to pray hard, _'God-Emperor in heaven who watches over us. I'm not sure if you know who I am or if you can even hear me, but if you can I beg you for your guidance. I need to know what I'm supposed to do? What does the raven mean? Why do I keep dreaming about it? Why am I so powerful? Do I have some grander purpose?'_

He almost felt his spirit lift out of his body as he saw into the spiritual plane of existence. He gazed up into the stars and he could hear whispers. The voices were strong and echoic, but as he focused on where they were coming from, he could see a raven. Seiras psychically called out to it a moment later, _'Raven! Why do I keep dreaming about you?!'_

His question was answered a moment later when he saw the silhouette of the raven grow larger and face him. It responded a moment later in a deep and powerful voice, _'You sound like a boy…where are you?'_

' _Alaseirian on Calderis. Who are you raven?'_ Seiras asked.

' _How old are you boy?'_ the raven asked him.

' _I'm almost 15,'_ he responded slowly.

The raven never spoke again as Seiras felt himself returning back to reality. His eyes readjusted to reality just in time to catch the sight of his father walking over. Kiris sat down next to him and sighed, "Leila told me what happened…"

"Yeah…" Seiras said unsure of how to respond.

"You could have killed them, Seiras…I hope you realize that," Kiris continued.

"I know, father…I feel terrible," the boy said hanging his head in shame.

The man shook his head, "Why did it even happen to begin with?"

"Shirin picked a fight with me. She's upset that I'm more powerful than she is," Seiras shrugged.

Kiris shook his head, "Just because you have the power to hurt someone, doesn't mean you should, Seiras. To hell with your pride, son…she's your sister! What did you prove today? That you could beat up a girl? Everyone's afraid now…rumors are floating around that you put her in her place. Is that how you want to be perceived, son?"

"No…" he replied softly.

"With great power comes great responsibility…a good leader always knows when and how to use it properly. I've told you a thousand times and I'll tell you again…glory and pride only bring death and misery in the end. You don't have to prove anything Seiras. You already saved my life, and you're progressing just fine as a warrior. In time you will be a fine leader and hopefully live a happy life. That's all I want for you son…you don't have to be some messiah or angel. Just do what's right, and protect the people you care about," Kiris lectured.

Seiras nodded in acceptance as his father placed a hand over his shoulder. Kiris looked up at the sky sadly, "One day, we all die son…and the only things we leave behind are the legacies and memories we impart upon others. I hope when I'm gone one day that you'll remember everything I taught you."

"I will father…" Seiras replied as he looked up at the sky again as well.

A brief silence passed before Seiras asked a question, "Do you think it's true that we go to heaven when we die?"

"When I was your age, I asked Kaluka that very question. She told me that the truly faithful find themselves in heaven with the God-Emperor forever. The vile and faithless heathens are swallowed into the warped void of hell where they are forever at the mercy of spirits," Kiris explained.

"Sounds awful…" Seiras said grimly.

"Never waiver in your faith to the God-Emperor and you shouldn't have to worry about such things my son," Kiris said reassuringly.

Over the next three days, things had gotten somewhat back to normal. Nevertheless, nobody would talk to him about the ordeal, except for Leila and Samira unsurprisingly. The former had expressed concern for his well being, while the latter was actually glad that he knocked Shirin down a peg. The memory continued onward as it finally reached _that_ day...the day they came. Seiras was currently sitting in a meeting with his uncle's council of warriors when he heard a loud noise coming from outside. He and many others rushed outside and watched with disbelief as a metal bird flew over the village-city.

Everyone was gasping and shouting with concern as the Thunderhawk landed in the middle of the village. Many of the warriors fearfully raised their autoguns and spears as a large hatch came down moments later.

Kamran held up his hand for everyone to hold their fire. Every single person that saw what came out of the hatch was awestruck.

Three men, if one could even call them that, came out of the metal bird. They were fully armoured from toe to head and stood head and shoulders above the men. One was wearing black, one was wearing blue, and one was wearing red and white with trims of gold on his pauldrons.

Seiras looked over them with amazement when he saw a raven emblem on all of their chests and pauldrons. Within each of their raven crests was a ruby red piece shaped like a drop of blood.

The entire village of several thousand people were now crowding around these superhumans with confusion and anxiousness.

The one in the front wearing red took his helmet off a moment later and looked over the warriors. After he took his helmet off, the warriors relaxed when they saw that the man was a human. The man had short black and white hair with light brown eyes. He spoke calmly but powerfully to the surrounding village, "My name is Davian Thule…captain of the Blood Ravens. This is Reclusiarch Mikelus and Epistolary Anteas. We are space marines."

Seiras had never once heard the term 'Space marine', but he did understand what it was a moment later when Kamran shouted to the surrounding people, "These are angels from the heavens! Kneel everyone!"

Without hesitation, all of the villagers knelt low to the angels, including Seiras' own family. He himself didn't as he simply stared at them awestruck, _'Are those really angels?'_

"What brings you here, great and mighty angels?" Kamran asked Davian.

The captain looked around for a brief moment, "We're looking for a young boy…about 15 years of age and psychic. He contacted us."

"Y-you are?!" Kamran gasped.

It was at that moment, Mikelus spotted Seiras as the boy wasn't kneeling. He nudged Davian and spoke powerfully, "That might be him right there."

"That's him…I can sense his power," Anteas added as he walked over towards Seiras. Many villagers parted as the towering, armoured demi-gods walked past them towards the young teenager.

Davian and Mikelus followed behind Anteas as the librarian approached Seiras. The mighty warrior examined him briefly before speaking to the others, "He's young, extremely fit, and appears to be a stronger than average psyker. He'll do just fine."

Seiras looked up at them with amazement and confusion, "What do you want with me?"

"You contacted Azariah Kyras telepathically three days ago. He sent us to personally retrieve you," Anteas replied.

"I-I did? Who is Azariah Kyras?" Seiras gasped.

"He is the Chapter Master and Chief Librarian of the Blood Ravens. He was impressed by your ability to contact him psychically in orbit. When he learned you were a child, he believed you would make an excellent recruit," Anteas explained.

Before any more words were spoken between them, Seiras' father walked over and interrupted, "Mighty angels, your presence here is greatly welcome, but I must ask, what do you want with my son?"

Anteas and Mikelus ignored the man as they continued to examine Seiras, but Davian was nice enough to answer him, "You're the boy's father?"

"Yes, holy one," Kiris replied respectfully.

"We're conscripting the boy into the Blood Ravens. He looks like a worthy recruit. He is to be an Adeptus Astartes…an angel of death," Davian explained.

The villagers began to gossip like crazy at the notion. Kiris spoke up with shock a moment later, "You're taking him away?"

"That's what conscription means does it not? Are you here to voice your objection?!" Mikelus spoke harshly.

Kiris nervously backed down from Mikelus' powerful voice and presence. The chaplain was wearing a skull helmet and was undeniably terrifying to normal people.

Moments later, Kamran diffused the situation as he walked over, "Mighty angels, Seiras is our tribe's heir and future leader. Might I humbly ask what your need of him is?"

"We already told you…we're recruiting him into the Blood Ravens. Your son will become an Astartes too if he survives," Anteas said coldly.

"He is to become an angel like you?" Kamran clarified.

Anteas nodded, "Precisely."

"He is my only son, great angels…" Kiris said slowly.

"You disapprove? How pitiable and selfish. Allowing him to live pointlessly in this blissful squalor here would be a waste of his genetic gifts. Your son has been chosen to pursue the greatest of mankind's callings…to serve the Emperor as an Astartes! Would you deny the Emperor an angel of death!?" Mikelus asked Kiris.

"N-no, my lord…I wouldn't," the man responded with a bit of fear in his voice. The intimidating Reclusiarch towered over him with merciless stoicism.

"Good, because it's not your place to question the Emperor or his Astartes. The boy is now ours…and he will become one of us if he survives. We're done here, brothers…let us depart," Mikelus announced as he gestured Seiras away from his people and towards the thunderhawk.

Seiras looked around urgently at his father and uncle, "W-wait, what?! Father what's happening?"

Kiris looked away as he did not respond to his son's words. Several of the villagers found it confusing as the Astartes were technically abducting him.

"You're coming with us, boy," Anteas told him calmly as he practically dragged him towards the Thunderhawk.

"W-wait! Why me?!" Seiras protested. None of the space marines said a word as they ignored Seiras' panicked state. The Astartes didn't seem very interested in interacting with the villagers much as they practically took Seiras without a second thought to letting him say goodbye to his family.

They all stopped however when they could hear a girl crying and running towards him. Seiras turned around just in time as Leila embraced him tightly, "Seiras, what's happening? Why are you leaving!?"

"We don't have time for this sentimental nonsense," Mikelus said stalwartly as he sighed.

"Please, angel! Don't take my brother away!" Leila pleaded.

"We should let his family say goodbye at least," Davian told the chaplain causing him to shake his head and walk into the thunderhawk. Anteas and Davian both stood there in silence and watched as many members of the boy's family came up to offer emotional farewells. Seiras' mother in particular was crying heavily as she simply held him in a tight hug for over a minute.

"Go and be with the angels my son…you were always meant for greater things than this place. The God-Emperor will look after you," she said between sobs before letting go.

"Your mother speaks truly, my nephew…you will soar into the heavens and become an angel. I hope you'll look after us from the stars…we'll pray to you," Kamran spoke proudly.

Setara stared at the space marines sadly, "Can we go with him?"

Serias was surprised by his sister's question. Anteas shook his head, "Girls can't become space marines...and you would emotionally weaken him with your presence."

The girl looked at her older brother with tear-stained eyes as she hugged him tightly, "I'll miss you brother...I love you, Seiras."

Samira came up next and looked up at Seiras with a devastated expression, "You never did see my sculpture, Seiras…"

"I'm sorry, Samira...be good for mother and father. Work hard and perfect your craft. You're the smartest person I know," he replied to her.

She embraced him as she tried in vain not to cry. Despite the emotional weight behind their farewells, Seiras kept his composure as he began to accept that this was actually happening.

He then looked over towards Shirin who hadn't come over to him. She had a disturbed and disbelieving look on her face. Seiras addressed her as calmly as he could, "You get your wish after all, Shirin...I'm leaving."

"W-wait! Seiras, I didn't mean it! I'm sorry!" she shouted as she ran over and tightly held him. Seiras hugged her back somewhat surprised at her reaction.

Never in his life had his older sister shown this kind of an emotional fondness towards him. Shirin spoke softly, "I don't want you to go."

"I don't have a choice, Shirin…" Seiras said slowly as he tried not to cry himself.

His older sister sobbed quietly, "Promise me you'll watch over us from heaven."

"I will try, I guess," Seiras said uncertainly as he maintained his emotional composure as best he could. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes.

Finally, his father came up to him. Kiris was crying much to his disbelief. Seiras had never once see his father cry and was shocked by the sight of it. Kiris hugged his son briefly before placing a hand on his shoulder and staring into his eyes, "Never forget what I taught you…never forget the warrior's sacrifice."

"I won't father," Seiras said strongly.

Looking over towards Davian, Kiris spoke to him, "Will we ever see him again?"

"Maybe one day…" Davian lied. Kiris seemed to know that it was a lie as he held his head down in sad acceptance.

"Please angel…take care of my son," Kiris said softly to Davian.

The space marine seemed receptive to Kiris' words and nodded, "I'll look after him…you have my word. He will be our brother."

Without another word, the Astartes took Seiras towards the gunship. As the hatch began to close, Seiras looked out over his sisters and his parents crying. He still couldn't get over the sight of his dad in that state.

"I'll make you proud father!" Seiras cried out as the thunderhawk began to fly away.

Instead of the memory continuing onward towards his introduction to the chapter, Seiras felt his vision blacken as darkness and sickening malice surrounded him on all sides. He could hear the voices of the countless tens of thousands of victims he had personally killed over his lifetime crying out.

Emotional despair began to envelop him as he began to feel an overwhelming hopelessness and suffering.

"Father! FATHER!" Seiras called out into the screaming void of evil.

His calls were answered a moment later by a very dark and sinister voice, "A lost son looking for his father…perhaps I can help."

"Where am I!?" Seiras demanded.

"Come to me…" the voice commanded. Seiras did not budge as the voice took the shape of a massive bird in front of him.

"Who are you?" Seiras asked.

"The clever boy is wise to ask a stranger's name before trusting him. I am the Architect…I can help you," the voice said reassuringly.

Seiras did not trust the creature and responded immediately, "I don't need your help! Where's my father?!"

"You already know where he is. Kiris died 256 years ago, Seiras…but if you're talking about your gene father, I could possibly tell you."

It was at this moment, Seiras snapped out of his dying memories and his young human mindset. He immediately regained his Astartes form and clarity as he could see himself floating in an empty void in front of the large bird. An epiphany hit him a second later as he spoke aloud, "I died…is this the warp?!"

"Yes! You figured it out slower than I expected, but it doesn't matter. You have a powerful soul, so you're actually still intact even though you're dead. Isn't that fascinating?" the voice followed.

"You called yourself the Architect…what exactly do you create?" Seiras asked cautiously.

"Hope mainly. Speaking of which…listen to the hopes and prayers they give to you…" the bird replied.

A moment later Seiras saw a vision of his childhood home. The centuries had changed it dramatically and it was a much larger city now. In its center, a mighty temple stood and there was a statue of a space marine there. People were praying to it, and Seiras could hear all of their thoughts.

Many of the prayers addressed him directly. Some asked for divine protection, some wanted strength, and one even prayed for his return.

"Is that a statue of me?" Seiras asked uncertainly.

"Oh yes indeed. The great angel Seiras. Your sister Samira made that statue in honour of you. People pray to it every day." The Architect chuckled.

As he listened to the various prayers, a louder one caught Seiras' interest as it was a young woman. She was undoubtedly psychic as her voice was much louder than the others.

" _Lord Angel Seiras…my great ancestor. I'm not sure if you're actually real, but I need your help! I don't know who else to turn to! The voices in my head keep whispering to me, and I'm afraid of these dark spirits! Nobody can help me and I don't know what to do! Protect me from their evil! In the God-Emperor's name…amen!"_ the woman prayed.

"She's a descendant of my family?" Seiras wondered aloud.

The Architect replied with approval, "Yes…you should answer her prayer. Give her hope."

Focusing intensely on the woman across the warp, Seiras projected his mind towards her. He spoke to the woman psychically, _"Are you a shaman?"_

He could hear her desperate confusion as her voice echoed loudly all around him, _"Is it really you?!"_

" _The faithful shall know the Emperor's protection in heaven…do not waiver in your vigilance or your resolve. The voices and the daemons are fueled by your own doubts. Never trust them and always remember that The Emperor Protects,"_ Seiras replied to her.

Their psychic link was cut off a moment later by the Architect laughing, "What a pretty lie…you know that doesn't really happen now that you've experienced death for yourself."

"Ignorance is bliss for the weak…she deserves solace in her meager life." the librarian said dismissively.

"Strange that you would think so considering your love for the truth…though I suppose the endless thirst for knowledge is built into your genetics. As usual, the rules don't really apply to you, do they?" the architect replied.

"You're a daemon…aren't you?" Seiras asked knowingly.

"What are daemons really though? Do you even know? Would anyone? I could be a terrible and manipulative eldritch terror here to claim your soul, or I could be a helpful spirit in the warp showing you the way forward. Your perception cannot truly define or understand the objective truth behind what a daemon is." the Architect responded.

Seiras shook his head, "It's not a matter of perception. I know all I need to know about your kind. Daemons are inherently selfish, untrustworthy, and evil."

"Yes, just like living saints or the Legion of the Damned? They are daemons too are they not? Oh wait…they're servants of the Anethema. How could they be loyal to the Emperor and be daemons at the same time? Perhaps not all daemons are _'evil'_. Perhaps I'm actually here to help you, Seiras." the Architect countered.

The librarian was uncertain of how to respond to the counter. He had never once considered the fact that those beings were potentially daemons themselves. Seeing his doubt, the Architect followed up, "The universe is a place of twisted duality, but not everything is black and white. You cannot truly embrace knowledge with such a static and closed mind."

"That's exactly what a daemon would say. An open mind is like a fortress with it's gates unbarred and unguarded...I have no reason to trust you." Seiras replied stoically.

"One cannot understand the objective reality and truths of the universe with a closed mind. It places you in a static subjective reality that limits your potential and awareness. So I ask you, Seiras. Do you want the harsh truth or the pretty lie?" the Architect asked him.

"What truth are you referring to?!" Seiras demanded.

"Let's play a quick game shall we? I have two stones here in my talons...a red one and a blue one. Take the blue one and I'll leave you to your subjective bliss. You can live in ignorance believing whatever you want to believe. Take the red one and I'll set you free," the bird offered as he held up two floating stones for Seiras to choose from.

Seiras was truly uncertain of what to do in this situation. Part of him wanted to take the blue stone and another wanted to take the red one. He slowly reached for the red one despite his reservations. He stopped right before touching it and shook his head, "I have no interest in serving the ruinous powers, daemon!"

The Architect seemed interested, "So you're taking the blue one then?"

"I'm not playing this game with you! I'm not taking either one! You can't manipulate me that easily, daemon! I am only close-minded when it comes to dealing with warp filth and daemons! I will not become like Kyras, Avitus, or any of the others! You won't twist my faith that easily!" Seiras shouted angrily.

"Ah yes yes…Emperor good…daemons bad…blah blah blah. Do you even know what the Anethema thinks of Space Marines? He hates them…he sees you as disposable mutant tools. You're not even the first superhuman mutants he's disposed of before. Ever heard of the Thunder Warriors? The Emperor had them wiped out by his Custodes after he reconquered Terra. Imagine what he would have done to the space marines had he succeeded in his Great Crusade?!" The Architect countered.

"That's not true! You're lying! Why would he have made us in his own image then?!" Seiras replied.

"Now that is a good question! I want you to think about what Fulgrim told you, Seiras…and I also want you to consider why the Emperor doesn't like his primarchs. Everything Fulgrim told you was the truth." the daemon bird responded.

His eyes shot open with horror, "You saw that?!"

"I see pretty much everything…speaking of which, here she comes in three, two, one…" the voice began to count down before another horrible and powerful presence filled the surroundings.

"Close your eyes, Seiras…don't look at her," the Architect instructed him. Before closing his eyes, Seiras saw the bird shield him from a sinsister pink aura flooding the warp's horizon.

Moments later, a very familiar and strangely seductive voice sounded, "This one is mine…what are you doing here?"

"Then how did I get here first?" the Architect replied to the other daemon.

"Come to me, Seiras…don't trust this deceiver. His deals always come with a heavy price. I can offer you so much more than whatever false hope he has promised you," the second voice commanded him.

He almost felt compelled to obey it but resisted for a moment as he kept his eyes closed.

"You have nothing that he wants, and as usual, you're too slow. You should have known I'd be looking over this one," the Architect announced.

"Could we perhaps come to an arrangement?" the feminine daemon responded.

"I'll humor you, though Seiras is about to wake up. Live in your pretty lie for a while longer, Seiras...we'll meet again," the Architect laughed.

Before any more words were spoken, Seiras felt himself being ripped through the warp as he began to see the extradimensional realm fade from his view. Seconds later he jerked upright and found himself alive and in a strange crystal-like tube of some kind.

 **Seiras, Commorragh**

He flailed around urgently in it as he looked around, _'What was that?! Was I actually dead? It looks like I'm back in Commorragh! What were those daemons?!'_

His flailing quickly caught someone's attention causing the pod he was in to open. Seiras slumped out of it and began to look around with furious urgency. He was almost panicked as he saw a number of wracks slowly approaching him.

Their slow and cautious steps indicated that they didn't want to take chances distressing him. His panicked urgency eased up a moment later when he saw Melisara levitate in front of him. The haemonculus was smiling extremely creepily as she fearlessly grabbed a hold of his face, "Excellent! It did work. That was taking longer than I thought it would. I'm so glad I didn't lose you."

"Melisara?!" Seiras said her name without thinking.

The haemonclus perked up with amusement, "You know my name? When did you learn it?"

"Ummm…the wyches mentioned it," Seiras replied immediately as he caught his mistake.

"Yes, well I'm Melisara as you know. And your name is Seiras according to the Archon and some of the wyches. How do you feel right now?" she spoke with a very disturbing friendliness.

"Was I dead?" Seiras asked her curiously as he pushed the alien's hand away from his face.

The haemonculus nodded, "Yes, you were dead for about a day or so. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to resurrect you since you were so powerful, but I sacrificed a bunch of Eldar souls to bring yours out of the warp. I also fully repaired your body and even your black carapace. It had a few holes in it, haha."

"Why would you do that? What good am I to you alive? Are you going to just torture me to death now?" Seiras asked.

Melisara shook her head, "Oh no, my dear I only do that to people I hate. I rather like you…plus the Archon wanted me to bring you back anyways."

"What for?" Seiras asked.

"Hard to say…Faelan's a clever and unconventional boy," Melisara shrugged.

"Boy? Aren't archons typically millennia old?" Seiras asked.

Melisara nodded, "Well, yes they usually are. Though I guess everyone's a child to me."

"How old are you?" Seiras asked.

"You're a curious one, aren't you? I'm about 14,000 of your terran years in age…give or take a few centuries. It's hard to keep track of that timespan while living in the webway," Melisara answered.

Seiras gawked at her disbelievingly, "That's beyond ancient…you were alive during the Age of Strife then?!"

"Yes, and before the fall. I'm even older than Slaanesh and Vect. Isn't that a funny thought?" Melisara said with amusement.

The nearby wracks seemed a bit confused at Melisara and Seiras' interaction. The former was typically an evil sadist and the latter a bloodthirsty killing machine. Watching them converse calmly was a very unusual sight.

"Melisara, I have his restraints right here," one of the wracks spoke up.

The haemonculus waved him away, "That won't be necessary. Seiras can behave himself I hope."

"How were you able to resurrect me?" Seiras asked her curiously.

"I can regenerate anyone's body from just a bit of genetic material, and your soul was not fully separated from your body yet either. Had it taken any longer, I likely would have failed," Melisara noted.

 _'She has a point...those daemons were both trying to claim my soul in the warp,'_ Seiras thought concerned.

Seiras stared at her uncertainly, "How does that work for your kind? Don't you all go to Slaanesh the moment you die?"

"Typically yes, and especially for a Craftworlder without a spirit stone. We Drukhari however are non-psychic as a species, and it takes more time. A soul will remain with its body for about a few days actually…it's even longer if we're in the webway as it shields us from Slaanesh. To pull a soul out of the warp, it usually requires an exchange. I sacrificed several dozen kabalites and a few of our captive craftworlders to fish your soul back into your body. Psykers are very difficult to resurrect," Melisara explained.

"The last time we spoke, you mentioned something about going to Terra…I am curious as to how you've seen it exactly?" Seiras asked.

"I was cordially invited by the Adeptus Mechanicus along with a few of my colleagues. We struck a dark bargain with them. We would help them repair the Golden Throne in exchange for a number of things. One of which included the prohibition of any large-scale operation to attack Commorragh. I personally wanted a Custodes, but alas, they couldn't give me one. I asked about their similarity to Space Marines, and they told me that they were completely different and superior to Astartes. What I wouldn't give to get one and find out what they look like inside," Melisara said reminiscently.

"You've seen the golden throne?! That's impossible!" Seiras gawked.

"Yes…quite an amazing piece of technology. The Ancient Aeldari and the First Ones used many such psychic amplifiers millions of years ago," she explained.

"The First Ones? Who are they?" Seiras asked.

"The creators of the Eldar race. Some call them the Old Ones as well. It's a long story…they're the primordial rulers of the galaxy. They actually created the webway as well as the Eldar race and the Orks. Some believe they created your race as well," Melisara answered nonchalantly as if it was simple history.

"Never mind that. I can't believe anyone would let you near Terra, let alone the Emperor himself," Seiras said shaking his head.

"Would you like to watch it? I can download my memories of the event for us to watch," Melisara suggested as she already went about shooting some strange device into her skull. She then plugged it into a nearby console and closed her eyes.

Afterward, she unplugged the device and pressed a few buttons as a display screen showed some type of video, "Ah here we are…I'll skip all the boring stuff, but this is the Golden Throne right here."

Seiras could not believe his eyes as he watched several haemonculi work on a golden platform. Surrounding them were golden clad warriors and many Adeptus Mechanicus workers. Seiras had never seen an Adeptus Custodes before and stared with amazement as the superhuman bodyguards of the Emperor vigilantly watched the Haemonculi work.

"This can't be real…" he said slowly as the memory showed Melisara trying to talk to the Custodes. The golden warriors stoically ignored her, and one even raised his spear when she tried to get closer to the Emperor.

" _State your intention, alien,"_ one of the Custodes spoke calmly.

" _Now now, there's no need for this. I just need to readjust the psycables in his head,"_ Melisara said with an upbeat tone as the golden bodyguard stopped her from going up the throne's stairs.

" _The Magos will do it for you with your instruction. I will not allow you to touch the Emperor,"_ the Custodes followed up.

Though the memory was through Melisara's eyes, Seiras could almost tell that she was frowning sadly. The haemonculus sighed, _"Well if you want to increase the soul harvesting ability of this machine, then you'll need a special piece I've prepared. It will cut down your psyker sacrifice requirement a bit and increase the overall gain for the Emperor to power the Astronomican. Also, we can potentially seal off part of the adjacent webways to alleviate the psychic strain of the Emperor if you'd like"._

"Alright we'll skip some of this, but here's a good closeup of the Emperor," Melisara told Seiras as she fast forwarded the memory a bit and panned up to the top of the golden throne. At its apex, a skeleton sat covered in cables.

Seiras felt his hearts skip several beats as the sight of the Emperor caused true awe within him. Though it was concerning to see that the Emperor's body was essentially a decaying skeleton with many attachments plugged into him.

"This undeath is such a crude and torturous fate for the Emperor…he suffers in constant and horrible agony every waking second he's plugged into that machine. He lingers between life and death to keep the Astronomican lit and the warp tear at bay. No being in this galaxy suffers more than he does. Not even I could invent a better torture device than that Golden Throne. I could feel his pain when I got close to him," Melisara said distantly as she turned off the video.

"The Emperor suffers so humanity doesn't have to…" Seiras said distantly to himself.

"Ah yes, well he is a rather extraordinary being. I'm one of his biggest admirers! I was so saddened when I learned that I couldn't actually speak with him there. I offered to build a psychic receiving device so it could translate his psychic echoes into words through a machine…but the mechanicus refused. What a shame. What I wouldn't give to speak with him if only for a few minutes," Melisara sighed.

"You're an admirer of the Emperor? Don't insult me with those lies. I find that hard to believe…" Seiras said dismissively.

"Really now? And how is that hard to believe? The Emperor was the greatest gene-modder ever! A scientist and scholar with no equal…everything he ever created was a work of art. You space marines are incredible feats of genetic engineering. Truly, I envy the Emperor's skill with genecrafting. He's probably the only person in the entire galaxy that I could legitimately call my superior," Melisara ranted.

"I've never heard a xenos speak fondly of the Emperor of Mankind…" he replied disbelievingly.

"Well believe it, Seiras…I'm also fond of you as well. Your display of power and knowledge in the arena was truly impressive. Even as an inferior species, the Emperor's genetic crafting forged you into a warrior without equal. You also share my love of slaughtering people in ironically delicious ways. I do hope we can be good friends," Melisara said cheerfully.

Seiras literally shivered from the creepy way she was looking at him. He shook his head a moment later, "Why admire me at all? I lost…"

"Don't take it too harshly. The twins are the greatest warriors you'll find around this part of Commorragh," Melisara replied.

"The twins?" Seiras tilted his head in confusion.

"Faelan and Renfaeda…the archon and the succubus who killed you. I've been around a long time and I doubt anyone could kill them in a fair fight other than Lelith Hesperax or Drazhar maybe. Do you know how Faelan even became the Archon? His father was the hierarch to the previous Archon and was killed and left dead for failing a raid. Faelan took it personally and he killed the Archon and his entire group of Incubi bodyguards by himself. Trust me when I say that is no small feat. Renfaeda is also one of the most famous succubi in Commorragh. Faelan and his sister are the undisputed rulers of this part of Commorragh. Though I think they're at war with another Kabal at the moment." Melisara explained.

Seiras was silent for a moment as he tried to take in her words. After a brief pause, he spoke again, "I am curious about something, Melisara…"

"What's that my dear?" she asked with a smile.

"If you're so old, then why don't you look like some of the other haemonculi? You're…not as monstrous or hideous as I'd expect an ancient haemonculus to be. Is that just a gender disparity or something?" Seiras wondered.

"Are you saying I look good for a haemonculus?" she asked.

Seiras shrugged, "I suppose you could interpret it that way. You just look young despite your age."

"Well, you may not know this, but we Drukhari typically regenerate our youth and appearances by harvesting the souls of other beings through acts of extreme torture and pain. The older one gets, the more extreme and grand torture they have to do in order to maintain their youthful appearance and negate Slaanesh. Over thousands of years, this has severe diminishing returns and requires extreme levels of torture and soul harvesting. Therefore, most haemonculi don't look very pretty after 5 or 6 millennia. I personally however bypassed this issue with a certain organ created by the Emperor of Mankind. That is just another reason why I admire him so much," Melisara explained.

"An organ? What kind of organ?" Seiras asked.

The haemonculus giggled like a mad-scientist as she grabbed one his arms, "It'd be easier for me to just show you. Come with me."

Seiras immediately tried to get her to let go of him, but one of her spiny appendages quickly wrapped around his waist as well. The haemonculus was very strong much to his surprise as wrestling out of her grip wasn't exactly easy. Melisara giddily led him further down the lab towards a set of massive vault doors at the end.

Along the way, Seiras examined her "work" on display all around the lab. It was truly disgusting and horrifying to look at, but in a way, it was also impressive.

Melisara noticed his silent examinations and immediately commented on it, "If we have time later, I'll show you all of my side-projects. However, in here is my most prized possession!"

After opening the massive vault doors, Melisara guided Seiras towards a massive gestation tube where a man appeared to be floating inside. Seiras stared at it with shock, "What is that?"

"Have a closer look," Melisara said with anxious excitement in her voice.

Seiras walked up next to the pod and stared at the man inside. He was huge…easily bigger than Seiras himself. The librarian stared in confusion, "Is he a space marine? I don't see a black carapace…"

"No…better," Melisara laughed maniacally.

The man inside was about 280 cm tall by Seiras' estimate which was ridiculously enormous for a human. He had the anatomical proportions of a space marine but was clearly not an Astartes. He had short black hair and his eyes were currently closed.

"W-what is this?!" Seiras said with complete disbelief.

"Take a guess…" she beamed.

Seiras didn't want to believe it was true as he slowly asked, "Is he a primarch?"

"Yes! This is Ferrus Manus! Well…he's not the real Ferrus Manus. He's a perfect clone that was given to me by my friend Fabius Bile. Have you heard of Fabius? He's one of the Emperor's Children apothecaries. I believe he was the Chief Apothecary," Melisara explained.

"That's impossible! He cloned Ferrus Manus?!" Seiras said shaking his head in horror.

"Yes, isn't that amazing? He told me about it in exquisite detail. Apparently, his primarch Fulgrim wanted him to recreate Ferrus Manus in order to try and convince him to join Chaos. Fabius told me that he made several of these clones, but all of them ended up being killed. He also had a Fulgrim and a Horus one, but I think Abaddon the Despoiler killed the latter. He gave this last Ferrus Manus clone to me for safekeeping so Abaddon or Fulgrim wouldn't destroy it. All he wanted in exchange was all the gene-seed that I had acquired up until then and some terminator armour," Melisara elaborated in detail.

"You want a Custodes…but you already have a primarch?" Seiras said horrified.

Melisara nodded, "Yes, I'm a bit of a collector. But anyways, the primarchs have a very different biology than space marines. They have a number of extra organs in comparison to Astartes. One of these organs is called the Immortis Gland. It has several incredible functions…most notably its ability to regenerate injuries and to replicate and restore chromosomes in each individual cell in the body. The Immortis gland is what makes the primarchs immortal and hard to kill."

"So you…have one of these organs then?" Seiras asked with audible concern in his voice.

The haemonculus proudly chuckled, "I certainly do. I cloned one for myself. Watch this."

Seiras watched curiously as Melisara sliced her arm with one of her blades. Moments later the injury instantly began to heal much to his shock.

"The Immortis Gland has two lobes. The right half is called the Dextrophic lobe. It wasn't as effective on me, but it essentially made me grow bigger and increased my reaction time and senses considerably. I'm full grown and female so it didn't do much else sadly. However, the left half Sintarius lobe allows for instantaneous regeneration, and biological immortality. As you likely know, the breakdown of telomeres within the chromosomes of individual cells is what leads to the aging process and the body's eventual collapse. Your progenoid glands can also regenerate telomeres, albeit on a much lesser scale. That is why you don't age in any noticeable way or get diseased. The Sintarius lobe is much more advanced than the progenoids however. It corrects my aging issue much better than soul harvesting does. I'm effectively immortal and pretty hard to kill with it. Since I'm not human or male though, I didn't get the full benefits of the entire Immortis Gland unfortunately. Nevertheless, it completely bypasses the need for me to torture and harvest souls. I still do it for fun and research, but I technically don't have to anymore. The regenerative abilities of the Sintarius lobe have also reversed my aging process a bit as well. That's why I look so great," Melisara smiled.

Seiras backed away from the haemonculus disbelievingly, "What is this heresy?!"

"Yes, I know it's hard to believe from a scientific perspective. It was very difficult to make my body accept the organ. I had to rewrite my DNA a bit. It only took me a few centuries to make it work thankfully. I sort of had to hybridize my DNA with monkeigh DNA, but it was successful. You and I share some genetic similarity now. I suppose you could say I'm a chimaera or a hybrid," the haemonculus explained.

"Why are you showing this to me?! I must be in hell. This is the warp still isn't it?!" Seiras demanded angrily as he began to get agitated. He was genuinely disturbed beyond belief.

Melisara look at him curiously, "I assure you that you're in Commorragh alive and well. Is something wrong?"

"You damned xenos have a primarch that you're experimenting on and you have the nerve to ask me that?!" Seiras retorted.

"Well it's kind of a secret. I would be a fool to tell everyone that I have one of the Monkeigh god-princes in my personal lab. Nobody in Commorragh knows I have him. A few of my wracks do, but they wouldn't dare spread my secrets. What an interesting eternity they would live if they did…" the haemonculus said almost evilly with a nightmarish grin.

Seiras felt true fear from this monstrous alien as he took another step back, "I don't know what to say."

"'Thank you for bringing me back to life and showing me your lab, Melisara!' That would be a good place to start," Melisara's voice trailed off darkly.

He didn't know what to say to her. Every part of his training and his willpower wanted him to denounce this horrible creature outright, but he couldn't do it. Seiras simply looked at Ferrus Manus and spoke slowly, "I suppose from a scientific perspective your work is amazing…but I could never morally approve of all this insanity."

"That's a shame…because it will benefit you even more than me. I have a feeling you'll change your mind later when you find out how useful it is and how amazing of a scientist I am," she noted.

"How useful what is?! What are you talking about?!" Seiras demanded.

"Oh nothing, nothing! I'm just thinking aloud as usual! I eagerly look forward to the results," Melisara chuckled like a mad scientist

Seiras looked at the Ferrus Manus clone in the large tube and spoke seriously, "What do you plan on doing with Ferrus Manus? Is he just a trophy or are you going to perform some vile experiment on him?"

"Well, this clone is currently comatose. I had to put him under because he was too dangerous to control. Even as a clone, he's still very powerful and intelligent. Sadly, without his soul, this clone is only a weak shell of the actual Ferrus Manus. I kind of wanted to resurrect him…but alas I don't have nearly enough souls to bring a primarch back to life. To pull his soul out of the warp would be a great undertaking. Also if my theory is correct, I believe the primarch's soul is with the Emperor," Melisara mused.

"Why would you want to resurrect a primarch?! That would strengthen the Imperium considerably!" Seiras shook his head.

"You say that like it's a bad thing. I want your Imperium to stay powerful and dominant. Your massive empire is the only thing keeping Chaos and other foul creatures such as Tyrannids at bay. Commorragh is already protected by its treaty with Terra, and it would be much easier to maintain our status quo here if the Imperium remained alive. Plus, I've grown quite fond of your Imperium in the past millennia…especially after watching Ferrus' memories," she replied.

"I'm still not convinced I'm out of the warp. How is this real?" Seiras said slowly.

"I suppose it might be a bit overwhelming for you. Have you ever seen a primarch before?" she asked.

"Two…Omegon and Fulgrim," Seiras answered.

Melisara nodded, "Ah yes, Fulgrim…Fabius hates him greatly. I can't blame him after seeing Ferrus' memories."

"You've seen all of Ferrus Manus' memories?!" Seiras asked.

Melisara nodded, "I certainly have. The clone has all the memories of the real Ferrus Manus up until Istvaan I believe. It was amazing to see how he got his Necrodermis arms. I have made multiple requests for Faelan to go retrieve Necrons for me to recreate them, but the Kabal doesn't like fighting Necrons…no fun in it I suppose. I offered a great sum of rewards including my own services to several other Kabals that would be willing to do it. Only Vect's Black Heart Kabal actually agreed to get me some."

"Ferrus Manus' Iron hands were Necrodermis?!" Seiras gawked.

"Of course they were…living metal harder than ceramite? What does that sound like to you? But anyways, I rather enjoy all of the parts where he interacts with the Emperor. Would you like to see what the Emperor looked like in the flesh?" Melisara asked.

Before even waiting for his answer, Melisara pressed a few buttons on a display screen next to Ferrus Manus' tube. Moments later, a memory played on the screen of a large panel nearby. Seiras watched anxiously as it showed Ferrus Manus standing before the Emperor of Mankind.

"And to you, number 10…I bestow upon you the 10th Space Marine Legion. They call themselves the Storm Walkers. They are yours to command. Go out and conquer back the galaxy for humanity my son," The Emperor's godly voice sounded.

Even through a display screen of the clone's memories, Seiras could feel the power and compulsion to listen to the Emperor. Through Ferrus' eyes, the Emperor didn't look the same way he did in all of the ecclesiarch depictions of him. He didn't look holy or divine…he just looked like a large man with long dark hair in beautiful golden armour.

Seiras felt compelled to bow his head in respect as he took a knee. The Emperor's voice actually sounded familiar to him. _'I've heard his voice before…in the navigation chamber. The Emperor really did save me,'_ a shocking epiphany hit Seiras.

Melisara turned the screen off a moment later, "We could be here all day watching this…and trust me I've watched all of it multiple times."

"You intend on releasing Ferrus Manus back to the Imperium?" Seiras asked Melisara.

She nodded, "Yes…but I won't risk his destruction until he's fully resurrected. I thought about contacting the Ynnari to do it, but Vect has expressively forbidden interaction with them and banished anyone who openly supports them. I don't really trust harlequins or craftworlders either or I'd ask them."

"Who is Vect?" Seiras asked.

"Asdrubael Vect…he's the Supreme Archon of all of Commorragh. He supposedly died a while back, but that's nothing new. I believe he's a Dark Muse now," Melisara noted.

Seiras shook his head, "How do you expect me to believe any of this? You never answered my question…why tell me these things? I doubt I'm ever getting out of Commorragh."

Melisara narrowed her gaze at him and chuckled, "Well I could 'accidentally' let you escape…I want your help to bring the primarch back to life first however."

"What would the Kabal or the wych cult say about that?" Seiras tilted his head doubtfully.

Melisara shrugged, "I don't care what they'd say. Who is going to question a haemonculus? We're politically untouchable in Commorragh, and I'm also immortal, rich, and friends with Vect. If someone ever confronted me over the 'accident', I'd ensure that they would have a very interesting eternity to live."

"How am I supposed to help you resurrect Ferrus Manus?" Seiras demanded.

"You're a psyker…a powerful one too if you're able to use psychic abilities around a null. You could potentially summon Ferrus Manus' soul out of the warp with a mass sacrifice. That or you could bring the clone to Khaine's Gate and into the warp to do it," Melisara speculated.

"Why don't you just give this clone to his chapter, the Iron Hands? Or to the Adeptus Mechanicus?" Seiras asked.

"Like I said…I need a psyker to bring him back. The Iron Hands or the Mechanicus couldn't really do anything that Fabius Bile hasn't done already. Plus they'd probably start worshipping his sleeping body instead of actually trying to resurrect him," Melisara explained.

"I still don't understand how a primarch clone can even exist…" Seiras wondered.

"By my estimate, the primarch clone is biologically identical to the original, but the science isn't the only thing that makes primarchs powerful. Their souls were also infused with warp energy. Without his original soul, this Ferrus Manus clone has about 35% of the power that the real one possessed," Melisara explained.

"How am I supposed to help you if I'm a slave to the wych cult?" the librarian demanded.

Melisara smiled, "That's only temporary…go along with all their pointless endeavors and humor their egos for a while. I'll 'accidentally' let you escape later like I said."

"What about this psionic limiter collar on me?" Seiras followed up.

"I'll undo it when I'm ready to let you go," she said casually.

"This sounds like some elaborate hoax to torture me. Give me one valid reason as to why I should trust you at all?" Seiras asked.

"I didn't remove your Betcher's Glands…" Melisara smiled.

Seiras felt his hearts jump as his eyes widened. He immediately recollected his composure but was truly shocked by Melisara's words. He quickly realized that she would obviously know about it considering that she had a primarch and was experienced with space marines.

A moment later he looked at her seriously, "Is there anything else I should know then?"

"I enhanced your psionic collar with an agony circuit and a paralysis shock function. It works like this," Melisara said coolly as she pressed a trigger switch in one of her hands.

Seiras immediately howled in agony as an electric surge flooded his entire body. His insides felt like they were on fire. The pain constantly shifted and wasn't consistent or patterned which made it nearly impossible to adjust or brace through it.

Melisara held the button down for a bit longer than necessary as she took in his painful yell with a curious smile. A moment later she released it causing Seiras to pant heavily as he twitched sporadically.

"You have a very high pain threshold, so I plugged it into your black carapace too. If you do anything questionable, I can just do this," she chuckled as she pressed the trigger again causing Seiras to writhe in pain.

After watching him scream in pain for several seconds she released it again and continued, "It works by overloading your nervous system and flooding your neural synapses with random pain sensations. It's sporadic and random in order to ensure your body never adjusts to the pain."

"If you're intent on allying with me, then what's the point of this?!" Seiras demanded.

"It's a failsafe…also it'll set the others at ease if they know they can stop you by pressing a button. Complacency breeds ignorance and laziness. They won't be as vigilant if they can just do this to you," Melisara explained as she pressed the button again.

"ARGHHH! Curse you, alien!" Seiras shouted as he tried to brace himself through the pain again.

Melisara laughed at him as she released it once again, "Sorry, old habits die hard I suppose. I didn't mean to do it that time. Anyways, just go along with the twins and be their little pet for a while. I doubt I need to say this, but don't tell them anything I've shared with you. Your freedom is wholly dependent on your cooperation with me."

Seiras glared hatefully at the haemonculus, but he truly had no other choice but to go along with her plan. He nodded his head in acceptance, "Fine…it's not like I have anything else to lose here."

"Excellent to hear. I have a feeling that you and I will become great friends! Now, I'm going to have my wracks bring you back to one of the slave chambers for now. I have other projects to attend to at the moment. I'm certain Faelan or Renfaeda will be by to retrieve you once I tell them you're alive again. We'll speak again later. I still want to show you my side projects at some point," Melisara said approvingly.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Alright, so some big bombs dropped this chapter that some of you might not have been expecting. The chapter starts off with Seiras dying and seeing his life flash before his eyes.

I showcased his human life a bit and how he became a space marine. Seiras' tribe is heavily based on the Fremen from Dune, but I'm sure that was pretty obvious to anyone who has read those books as they're a religious desert tribe that lives near the north pole. The shamans are essentially reverend mothers, and Seiras' people sort of saw him (or any male psyker born in their tribe) as a Kwisatz Haderach. For those that don't know what that is, it's essentially a male reverend mother/bene gesserit. They also revere male psykers because the Emperor was a psyker and a warrior.

For those that don't know, autoguns are a very primitive weapon used in the Imperium. They're essentially assault rifles and are less effective than lasrifles. If a lasrifle is a flashlight, then an autogun is a stapler. Some Imperial Guard regiments use them, but they're common among penal legions and Naval Armsmen.

Once he realizes he's dead, Seiras meets a suspicious entity in the warp that calls himself the "Architect" who is trying to pull a Morpheus on him. I'm sure a lot of you already know who he is…how will things progress with these powerful warp entities targeting our favorite heretical librarian?

The scene with Melisara was probably the biggest reveal of this chapter, however. We learned that she is essentially an Emperor fangirl that helped repair the Golden Throne and that she has a clone of Ferrus Manus. It seems like Seiras is on a journey meeting all the primarchs…will he see any others? You can already count on Fulgrim coming back at some point. Where do things go from here? You'll have to wait and see…oh and be warned next chapter is going to be extra heretical.

Anyways, I appreciate all the feedback from the last chapter. Feel free to speculate on things or if you're curious about something send me a PM. Stay tuned until next time my heretical friends.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** So, one of my reviews commented on the size of the primarchs. I just wanted to address that and why I scaled them down. The canon is extremely contradicting when it comes to the sizes of the primarchs. Some sources say they're like 12 feet + while others say they are head and shoulders above Astartes just as the Astartes are head and shoulders above regular humans. I chose the latter because it seems more reasonable to me. Think about the scale for a moment. If a regular man is about 175-184 cm in height (5'9" to 6'0 feet tall), then a space marine being head and shoulders taller than him would be 228-244 cm (about 7 and a half to 8 feet on average). If a primarch was head and shoulders taller than let's say a terminator which is about 240 + cm on average (8 feet usually), then a primarch would be between 275 cm to 3 meters in armour. (9-10+ feet). Primarchs that wore terminator armour such as Perturabo and Horus might have been close to 11 feet. Vulkan and Magnus were probably around there too as they were both considered the biggest even out of Terminator Armour. That's the most reasonable range in my opinion as I think the whole 12-15 feet is absolutely silly and utterly ridiculous. One of the books said Russ was like 1.75 x the scale of a space marine which is insane as it would make him like 4 meters tall. That's just comically big to me. It's more likely he and the others were 1.75 x the scale of a human which would put him over 3 meters tall. Most artwork and canonical depictions of primarchs vary depending on certain stories, but all we really know for certain is Alpharius and Omegon are the shortest and Magnus and Vulkan are the largest. I'm also pretty certain Perturabo and Horus were some of the biggest ones too. It is also known that certain primarchs could alter their size with warp powers (Magnus and I think Russ could do it too). I simply went with my own headcanon seeing as how this is just a fanfic, but if my scales or logic bothers anyone, then just imagine your own scales and disregard mine. 30-50 more cm on a primarch's height really won't matter from a narrative perspective anyways. Also keep in mind that Ferrus Manus is out of his armour at that size and it's only Seiras' estimate. It's not really a big deal, but I just wanted to clarify my logic before continuing.

 **Chapter 16: The Indignities of Slavery**

Seiras reluctantly followed Melisara out of the vault of her inner lab and back outside to the main area. The wracks, while mostly masked, all had looks of concern and confusion directed at Melisara as she was actually smiling.

"Take Seiras to Slave Chamber 4, and make sure he knows the way," Melisara instructed the wracks with an upbeat order.

One looked at her baffled, "Melisara, we will of course do as you ask, but I must ask why? You don't want him restrained or blindfolded?"

The haemonculus eyed the wrack dangerously before smiling at the Astartes next to her, "That won't be necessary. Seiras and I are friends now…aren't we Seiras?"

The space marine librarian nodded in agreement as he joined the conversation, "We are…Melisara and I have come to an understanding."

"That means that he won't be a problem. If anyone has any objections, please speak. I would love to hear them…" she almost taunted the wracks to say something negative.

The wracks all silently looked amongst each other before reaching a silent conclusion about what had happened. Seiras briefly pondered on what they could possibly be thinking, _'She said the wracks were aware of her personal studies and the primarch clone. If that's the case, then they're probably under the assumption that Melisara offered me a deal.'_

"Consider yourself lucky, space marine…Melisara's favor will buy you a lot of reprieve in Commorragh. She's one of the oldest and most respected haemonculi in this city," one of the wracks spoke directly to him.

"Now that we've all reached a nice little understanding here, I want you to bring Seiras to Slave Chamber 4." Melisara repeated her command a bit more seriously now.

"Is there a reason you're sending me to that specific one?" Seiras asked her.

Melisara nodded, "Oh yes there is…everything I do is for a reason, my dear. Go and make some friends there…and don't you get any crazy ideas about escaping."

The way she said that last sentence almost made Seiras believe she was encouraging him to gather allies. He shook his head in silent confusion, _'I can't believe this still…is she really going to let me escape?'_

"Come, space marine," the leader of the wracks motioned for the large warrior to follow them.

Seiras barely made it halfway to the exit across the lab before the wracks stopped. In front of them was none other than Renfaeda who had just recently arrived by the looks of things.

The Succubus queen gestured for the wracks to stand aside as she approached Seiras, "Move aside and let me have a good look at him."

The wracks obeyed without question as Renfaeda walked directly up to Seiras. He was somewhat confused by her use of Gothic, but quickly figured that Renfaeda wanted him to know what was being said.

She observed his freshly healed body with curious interest, "Hmmm…not a scratch on you. Melisara even repaired those scars on your face."

"She did?" Seiras replied with confusion.

Seeing Renfaeda's arrival, Melisara wasted no time coming over to them, "Ah, Renfaeda, what brings you here so soon?"

"I came by to check on your progress…I didn't expect to see the space marine alive and well though. I thought you said it would take until the end of the day. When did he wake up?" the succubus responded curiously.

' _Melisara must have purposely told Renfaeda to come later so she would have time to talk with me,'_ Seiras quickly realized.

Melisara nodded, "Just recently as a matter of fact. As I told you earlier, he was a bit difficult to reanimate, but my skills are unprecedented and legendary. I have your little entourage in pods healing as well. They'll probably be back in half a day or so. Forgive the delay, but he was a much higher priority. I'm sure you'll understand,"

"Hmph…why isn't he restrained? Were you just letting him walk out of here with six wracks? You do realize what this monkeigh is capable of right?" Renfaeda demanded with disbelief on her face.

"Oh don't you worry about that. I developed an easy solution to deal with any behavioral issues. Here I have a trigger switch for his new and improved agony circuit! It's plugged into his body through the limiter collar and can easily take him down if he gets any ideas. Observe…" Melisara ranted as she held down the trigger switch.

Seiras immediately howled in pain as the agony circuit overwhelmed his senses. He tried to remain standing, but it felt even worse than before as it literally forced him to his knees almost paralyzed.

" **It's got three settings here: stun, punish, and torture. You can easily adjust it as you see fit, though I must warn you that prolonged use of the highest setting could eventually damage his nerve cells. I would advise you only do that for a minute or two at the most or you'll risk numbing him to the pain,"** Melisara instructed as she handed Renfaeda several trigger switch devices.

Seiras began panting heavily as the shocks finally stopped a moment later. Renfaeda seemed delighted in its effectiveness at inflicting agony on the space marine.

" **I have about five of these trigger switch remotes. One for me, you, Faelan, and two for whoever else you want to give them to. I assume you'll want your succubi to have them, but feel free to give them to anyone you want,"** the haemonculus continued.

Renfaeda looked over the trigger switch device before attaching it to her wrist. She observed it briefly with a smile before testing it out herself.

The succubus queen gleefully began to play around with the device as she cycled through it watching how the different settings affected Seiras. Stun didn't cause any pain, but it completely paralyzed him, much to his horror. Punish was the setting Melisara had been using previously. Torture was both of the previous settings combined and was unbearably painful as it could force him to his knees in screaming rage.

After briefly torturing Seiras for a minute or so, Renfaeda glanced at Melisara curiously, **"This will work just fine in keeping him under control…though you should have thought about making a reward setting for it too."**

" **A reward setting? Hmm…I could possibly make one later. I find it amusing you would even want something like that."** Melisara chuckled.

The Succubus grinned wickedly, **"It doesn't matter…I don't really need it anyways."**

" **Oh? Have plans now do you?"** Melisara said suggestively.

" **Faelan and I both have plans for him…"** Renfaeda replied vaguely before looking over at the kneeling Seiras.

She observed him as he tried to recover from his torture, **"Where were you sending him anyways?"**

" **Oh I was just going to deposit him in one of the slave chambers. I was most curious to see how he would interact with aliens in confined spaces. I thought Chamber 4 would be a good location. That's also the closest chamber to my lab and it makes for convenient follow up examinations,"** Melisara explained.

The succubus chuckled, **"That's the one Mokaela dropped all of her recent slaves off at. I see…well I'll just go ahead and take him there myself."**

" **My wracks were already taking him there. Are you sure?"** Melisara asked.

" **Positive. Keep up the great work, Melisara…whenever you're done with the others send them my way, will you?"** Renfaeda requested.

" **Of course my dear. You have fun now,"** Melisara practically giggled as she levitated away.

Before the haemonculus had fully departed however, she glanced back at Seiras one last time and addressed him in Gothic, "You treat her nicely now, Seiras. Renfaeda is technically your owner. Don't go and ruin a good thing after all the effort I went through to revive you. Cooperation will go a long way here…"

He didn't respond to her, but internally he was concerned, _'She wants me to swallow my pride and be their little pet for now…I don't know if I can stomach it. I suppose I'll have to for the sake of my freedom.'_

Seiras felt extremely uncomfortable as the wracks all scattered about to their own way moments later.

"C'mon Seiras, let's go for a walk, shall we?" Renfaeda said sadistically as she motioned for the Astartes to follow her.

After a short and silent walk, the two were outside of Melisara's lab and on a massive walkway of some sort. As they walked in silence, Seiras reflected heavily upon the huge reveals that had recently changed his entire plan. There was no way in a million years that he was going to try and escape without the Ferrus Manus clone. While even Seiras as an Astartes was expendable, a primarch most certainly wasn't.

The librarian couldn't help but feel amazed by the existence of a loyalist primarch. If he could potentially bring Ferrus Manus back, he would validate his entire service to the Emperor and mankind as a whole. He could redeem himself and his chapter if he resurrected Ferrus Manus. Even though it wasn't his primarch, Seiras was anxious for a chance to talk with the Gorgon.

He had heard countless legends about the Iron Hands' primarch and how effective he was at destroying alien civilizations. Many Deathwatch doctrines were adopted from his legion's success against greenskins and advanced alien civilizations. Techpriests of the Mechanicus also held Ferrus Manus in higher regard than most other primarchs as well.

' _I wonder what my Deathwatch brothers will think if I can escape with him. None of us are his gene-sons, but they'd all be just as amazed as I am,' The librarian pondered._

A moment later, Seiras snapped out of his delusions of glory and escape and regained his focus, _'I shouldn't distract myself with thoughts like that. I should focus on the present. I need to come up with a way to get out of here first. I have no idea how Melisara expects me to resurrect him…or if it's even possible. There are much bigger and important concerns here than my life…but I need to stay alive and do this for mankind. No indignity or torture will stop me from fulfilling my duty. Damn my pride, I have to succeed no matter what the cost!'_

As he contemplated on various scenarios in which Melisara would let him escape, Seiras pondered on a serious issue, _'I have no idea how to navigate Commorragh…and if I steal a ship, I'm going to need help. This city is a like a galactic sub-sector sized underhive…I can't even tell which way is up or down here. All of the buildings seem to jut out at different angles as well…there's no simplicity to the planes and dimensions here. Navigating this place will be impossible without proper insight into where to go. Not only that but taking a ship would be difficult. My only options there are to stow away and fight my way to freedom on their next raid, or to steal a ship and pilot it out of here myself. Though I don't know how many people it takes to fly a decent sized ship out of here. If that's the case, then I might actually be able to free some others to help me. Finding a Craftworlder slave would be ideal…Oh and I definitely need that webway remote back from Aelendriel. Wait…where is that thing?! Oh damn…this just got more complicated.'_

Renfaeda eventually led him over the massive walkway and up towards a private looking pavilion spire of some sort which overlooked the city. They were completely alone much to his concern and he couldn't help but feel confused as he glanced at the succubus.

"I thought you were taking me to a slave chamber…why did we stop here?" he asked the wych.

She sighed at his question as she pointed into the horizon, "Take a good look out there."

Seiras looked over the horizon with disbelief at the sheer size of the spires on the horizon. The architecture in Commorragh was impossibly difficult to understand or comprehend, and Seiras could swear he also saw a star on the horizon giving a faint illuminated light over the city.

' _How do they have star in here? Isn't this the webway?! That's impossible unless they moved it in here.'_ he thought in disbelief.

"Beautiful isn't it? Commorragh is an amazingly large and incredible city. The main hub is larger than a star system and its as densely populated as one of your monkeigh hive worlds. Countless trillions live here in this city. The trueborn nobility, the wych cults, and the elite kabals all live near the top of the spires. Hellion gangs, Reavers, vatborn, and other lowborn filth live near the middle levels as well as countless slaves. The bottom tiers of Commoragh are infested with mandrakes, and other abominable creatures. I've never seen the filth down there, but I hear it's pretty dreadful," Renfaeda spoke up as she stood next to Seiras looking over the city.

He glanced at her confused, "Why are you telling me this? What are we doing here?"

"You've proven you're more useful than a typical slave or arena combatant. Beating all of my cult's greatest wyches back to back with none of your own weapons is no small feat. I must say I'm actually impressed with your competency and intelligence. Truly, you're tiers above any monkeigh I've ever encountered, and I've seen quite a few of you space marines before. You behave more like an Eldar than a space marine. I find that interesting about you," Renfaeda complemented him.

Seiras gave her a bewildered stare, "You defeated me with one attack…I find it hard to believe that you would think so."

"It would have been a more interesting fight had you been fresh. I regret that I had to put you down, but I couldn't risk upsetting our fans. I'm thankful that Melisara has the skills to resurrect Monkeigh though. It would have been a shame to lose you." Renfaeda replied.

"So what happens now? What use am I alive here other than being tortured?" Seiras asked.

Renfaeda smiled wickedly, "My brother wants to recruit you into the Kabal. He believes your expertise would prove invaluable in our war with a rival Kabal. Not to mention it would be a demoralizing status symbol to all these pompous nobles here if we have a pet space marine. Even more so after they all saw what you could do. You're going to be quite famous around here once they all find out you're alive again."

"What? The Archon wants my help fighting another Kabal? What could I do that none of you can't?" Seiras shook his head disbelievingly.

"Faelan will explain that in better detail later when you see him. Regardless of that matter, I brought you here so we could have some privacy. I have a few questions for you that I would like answers for," Renfaeda changed the subject.

Seiras stared at her blankly, "Such as?"

"Who gave you adrenal combat stimulants before your fight?" she asked almost dangerously.

The librarian gave her an emotionless look as he shrugged, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't insult my intelligence, please. I've been around for a long time and I can see how drugs affect people as clear as glass. You started moving way faster once your adrenaline peaked…so I'll ask again. Who gave you the drugs?" Renfaeda asked.

"Kaerith," Seiras answered honestly.

Renfaeda chuckled at his response, "I thought so…I was wondering what she was doing near you before the match started. Nevertheless, I don't blame her. Nelfaera and Aelendriel like to bully her a lot. They underestimate her greatly. Kaerith is my favorite of the bloodbrides, though I haven't really mentioned that to anyone. What she lacks in skill, she makes up for in cunning."

"You're okay with it?" he said confused.

The succubus nodded, "Of course I am. Aelendriel is insufferably arrogant and Nelfaera is a petulant brat. Those two needed a bit of humility. I like the ways you killed them both…especially Aelendriel. It's going to take years before her ego recovers from that, hahaha."

"You seem awfully careless about your own followers…why?" he said shaking his head.

"It's complicated…I do love my dear cousin Nelfaera, but she's grown far too bold in recent years. She thinks just because Faelan protects her that she can get away with anything. I can't directly punish her without upsetting my brother. Aelendriel on the other hand is just annoying when she starts boasting about all of her lackluster accomplishments. A bit of humility ought to remind her of her place now. It might also motivate her to train more and talk less," Renfaeda elaborated.

"What about Mokaela?" Seiras asked.

"I love Mokaela. She's one of my best friends. We used to be rivals, but after I defeated her, she's been respectful ever since. She'll probably treat you nicely now that you've also defeated her. Maybe it's just because she's half-harlequin, but she's not a very ambitious succubus. She just enjoys fighting, killing, and raping," Renfaeda laughed.

' _Raping? How does a female rape anyone?'_ Seiras wondered briefly. He quickly dismissed that dark thought as he didn't actually want to know.

Seiras was silent for a moment as he looked back at the horizon. Renfaeda stared at him briefly before speaking again, "Next question…why did you kill the overseers in the slave chamber?"

"The hive gangsters?" Seiras clarified.

"Yes, I was surprised when I saw what you did to their little leader," the succubus replied.

"They said space marines were imperial propaganda…they didn't believe I was one. And then they threatened me with clubs. I made sure the rest of those slaves knew I wasn't going to tolerate blatant disrespect to Astartes," he stated as if it wasn't surprising.

The succubus laughed heartily at his explanation, "They actually threatened you?! Hahaha! Not even the kabalites here would have done something that stupid. Nobody is going to threaten you anymore…especially after your arena fight. That's hilarious that they tried to fight you. I couldn't help but notice how gruesomely you murdered them. You must have been pissed, huh?"

"They were subhuman filth. Death was probably too good for them. They honestly deserved to be in this forsaken place forever," Seiras replied heartlessly.

"You space marines don't really care about other humans, do you?" Renfaeda wondered.

Seiras shook his head, "Why should we?"

"Oh I'm not condemning you for it. I just think it's funny because they worship you space marines like you're these holy angels and you could care less about them! That's so beautifully ironic," Renfaeda beamed with approval.

"If you say so…" he replied carelessly.

"Anyways, next question: Do you really think Nelfaera is attractive?" Renfaeda asked.

Seiras was somewhat caught off guard by the question as he looked at her bewildered, "Why would I think-"

"You said it in the arena. I mean I figure you were probably just trying to upset Aelendriel, but it's true isn't it? Nelfaera was under the impression you fancied her appearance. Do you?" the succubus wondered.

"Not in the way you think. I just thought she looked unique for an eldar," Seiras told the truth.

"Good looks run in our family. The Aeshuls are renowned for our beauty, though Nelfaera is a bit exotic by Drukhari standards. She's adored by the halfborn though. Pretty much all of the local hellion gangs idolize her as some type of thug queen. A bit low-class for my tastes, but Nelfaera does enjoy being the queen of the streets. If she wasn't trueborn, she'd probably be in one of those gangs," Renfaeda noted.

Seiras shrugged, "I don't care how your kind perceives beauty or prestige. It's all irrelevant to me."

"Humor me for a moment if you would…what do you think of my appearance?" she asked curiously with a mischievous smile.

"You're an alien female with blue hair and ridiculous looking armour," Seiras stated the obvious.

She smirked at him, "What's so ridiculous about it?"

"I can see your bare skin and lack of protection. Howling Banshees wear practical light armour and they don't sacrifice any speed. Your armour serves no practical function other than flaunting yourself foolishly," he replied.

"Is the sight of my flesh…distracting?" Renfaeda asked seductively as she caressed her thigh while staring at him.

He felt somewhat horrified when he realized where the conversation was going and quickly lied, "I have no idea what you're implying."

"You don't think I'm sexy?" she asked bluntly.

"I am incapable of sexual attraction to even my own species…let alone a vile xenos fiend like you," Seiras replied almost hatefully.

"What would you say if one of us was interested in you? You wouldn't even be a little…curious?" She asked with a vixen tone.

The Astartes could not contain his concern as he felt Renfaeda stroke his arm with a single finger. He jerked his head towards her alarmed, "What?!"

"Haha, you look so disturbed. All I did was touch your arm. Are you imagining something naughty?" Renfaeda asked with a soft tone as she stroked his arm again.

He immediately pulled away from her, "Why are you touching me?"

"Does it bother you?" she asked knowingly as she ran her hand over the back of his arm and down his muscled back.

A sickeningly heretical shiver filled his entire body as Seiras reflexively jerked away from her once again.

"What are you doing?!" he demanded.

"What are you so afraid of?" she asked with an almost evil laugh.

Seiras' eyes widened as he stared at her cautiously, "I'm not afraid of anything. If you're going to torture me then just torture me. I won't humor this game of yours!"

"What game?" she asked innocently with a devilish smile.

The librarian immediately looked away, _'Just ignore this…she's doing this to torture me. The more I show resistance, the more she'll do it.'_

A moment later, Seiras felt Renfaeda jump onto his back. She quickly sat on his shoulders and wrapped her hands around his head.

He felt a horrific sensation as Renfaeda began to stroke his hair, "I love it when they play hard to get. It makes it much more fun."

"What?! Get off of me!" Seiras protested as he tried to grab ahold of her. Despite him knowing it was a bad idea to react this way, Seiras loathed the idea of this alien touching his hair and molesting him.

The succubus easily snaked her way over and around his body in an acrobatic display as Seiras was unable to grab her. After a few moments of failing, he stopped. Renfaeda quickly regained her former position and laughed, "Too slow."

"How is this childish nonsense fun for you? I fail to see what the point of this is…" Seiras said distastefully.

"What would you do if I ordered you to entertain me?" Renfaeda asked.

Seiras didn't respond as a very awkward silence followed. _'I don't like the sound of this…'_

"I don't understand," Seiras finally answered with audible concern in his voice.

Renfaeda jumped off of him a moment later and stood directly in front of him. She grabbed one of his hands and guided it to her chest, "Understand this?"

Seiras immediately ripped his hand free of her grasp after it touched her chest. He looked at Renfaeda defensively, "No, I don't…"

"Oh I think you do…what do you say? Want to get better acquainted? I'll let you touch me anywhere you want." she laughed at his reaction.

"Don't even joke about something like that…it's disgusting," Seiras replied.

Renfaeda gave him a foxy look, "That's what makes it so good."

Seiras glared at her and didn't respond. She shook her head at him and chuckled, "You realize I'm rewarding you, right? A bit of good incentive from a master to her slave. Billions would kill to be in your position right now…and yet none of them would interest me as much as you do right now."

"Just take me to the slave chamber," Seiras said slowly as he tried to diffuse the very awkward tension between them.

"Oh that's not how this works. I'm the master and you're the slave. I want something from you and you're going to give it to me…understand?" she grinned wickedly.

"What do you want from me?" Seiras asked confused. Truthfully, he already knew, but he wasn't about to breathe life into the horrific idea.

Renfaeda rolled her eyes, "I want to fuck you…obviously. I don't think I could have been any more blatant about it. Don't pretend like you couldn't tell what I wanted."

"Why?! We're not even the same species…" Seiras said horrified.

"I know…and that makes me wet. To be honest I got a bit heated up watching you kiss Kaerith the other day. I wondered how you would squirm if I had my way with you. I wondered just how easily I could seduce you if I wanted to," Renfaeda said seductively.

"Space marines can't have sex," Seiras tried to stop this inevitable horror.

Renfaeda rose a brow at him, "Really? I'll bet your freedom that I can get you off."

"If this is supposed to be some elaborate joke then I fail to see the point. There's no way you're serious…" Seiras replied concerned.

"What if I am? Nobody's around…it's just you and me here. No one will know…" she said with a sultry whisper.

"I'll never willingly submit myself to something that heretical and foul!" Seiras protested.

Renfaeda sighed at his attitude and shook her head, "I'm all for some violent foreplay then…"

A second later, she pressed the trigger and caused him to howl in pain. She definitely pressed the highest setting as it forced him to the ground. After an excruciating twenty or so seconds, she released it causing Seiras to gasp for air.

Taking advantage of his weakened state, she quickly got on top of him. Seiras felt the succubus straddle him a moment later as she leaned in close to his face, "What's the matter, Seiras? Afraid you might actually like it?"

"Space marines don't breed…you're wasting your time," Seiras said between painful breaths.

"Let's make that deal then…if I can't get you hard, then I'll let you go back to Corun. Deal?" she said temptingly.

Seiras was extremely hesitant to accept her offer, but at the same time it was alluring. Had he not been made aware of the Ferrus Manus clone in Melisara's lab, he likely would have accepted it.

' _She can't arouse me like those Slaaneshi cultists did…that was chaotic warp corruption and I got rid of most of it. She's just a filthy xenos…I can't actually have sex with her!'_ Seiras thought assuredly to himself.

"I'm thinking you're too afraid to accept my deal because you know you want this," Renfaeda whispered.

"Go to hell, alien whore!" Seiras spit at her face. He made sure not to use his Betcher's glands as he didn't want to derail his escape plans. His disrespectful gesture towards Renfaeda however had left a large wad of saliva over the succubus' face. She unsurprisingly activated his agony collar again causing pain to flood his body. She then switched to the low stun setting which completely immobilized Seiras and kept him stunned.

Instead of her being furious like he expected her to, Renfaeda amusedly rubbed the saliva off her face and began to lick her fingers. She then followed by leaning over him and spitting directly into his open mouth.

The Succubus smiled proudly when she saw the disgusted look on Seiras' face as he tried to cough up her alien saliva.

"You want to spit like you're some feral animal? I can play that game...how does mine taste, Seiras? Did you like it? Do I taste good? Maybe you want something more than that…a bit of tongue too?" Renfaeda cooed as she began to lick his face.

At this point, her chest was hanging right over him with considerable cleavage showing. There was no doubt that this was probably by design. Seiras couldn't help but look as her breasts were practically falling out of her slutty top.

Renfaeda noticed this and beamed wickedly, "And where might you be looking hmm?"

Seiras felt a strange warmth on his waist followed by some type of moist sensation spreading over his lap. Renfaeda was getting wet from this pseudo-sexual torture, and it seemed very evident after she noticed him _looking_ at her.

She stared at him in a very predator like fashion, "I recall you saying that you had zero interest in this kind of thing. If that's true, then I guess this won't affect you will it?"

Seiras felt a sickening tremor as Renfaeda quickly jabbed him with a needled syringe from her armour a moment later, "Try some of this…it's called Nightbliss Nectar and it's the most potent aphrodisiac in Commorragh. "

Seiras had no idea why Renfaeda would have had a drug like that on her person, but that was the least of his concerns now as he began to feel a tremendously shameful lust flooding his body. In mere seconds, he began to get hard.

"OOOH! What's this?!" Renfaeda asked smugly as she reached down and felt his erection.

Even despite the powerful effects of the drug, Seiras was willing himself to resist the depraving sick thoughts in his mind. He forced a glare at Renfaeda as she revealed his manhood and began to stroke it.

"Odd...didn't you say space marines were immune to this kind of thing? So much for that little lie! You want to fuck me hahaha! Your emperor would be so ashamed! In fact..." she grinned wickedly as she began to suck his cock with masterful perfection.

His rage was quickly beginning to fade out of his mind as the overwhelming pleasure forced his body to betray him. The poisonous aphrodisiac that Renfaeda had given him was quickly taking full effect now as Seiras could no longer keep himself from groaning in pleasure.

The succubus lifted her head up and smacked her lips as she locked eyes with him, "Somebody likes it. Want more?"

He felt a horrible throbbing and pressure as more blood poured into his manhood. Renfaeda teasingly stroked it a few times as she smugly looked at him awaiting his answer.

"Stop this…I don't want to-" he was beginning to regain his senses as he tried to resist the temptation. Unfortunately, he was instantly silenced as Renfaeda stripped her armoured panties and mounted him.

She spoke with sultry pride, "OOOOHH! You're inside of me…there's no turning back now. Might as well give in and indulge yourself."

Seiras couldn't stop a gasp of ecstasy from his throbbing cock entering her. Renfaeda felt completely different than the human women he had previously had sex with. Her alien vagina was deeper, more muscled, and much warmer. She was very tight, but he felt an amazing tremor of pleasure from how soft, wet, and hot it was.

The arrogant look of satisfaction on Renfaeda's face from invoking this response was sickening to him, but right now he could barely focus on any logical or ethical thought.

Renfaeda took her time and enjoyed every second of this moment, "That look on your face turns me on so much, Seiras."

A second later she began to grind and ride him at a torturously slow pace building up even more pressure within him. Her slow grinding was driving him mad as it began to amplify his desire.

"Mmmm…nice and slow," she moaned as she went just fast enough to cause incredible pleasure, but slow enough to drive him mad and deprive him of relief. This went on for what felt like an eternity as Seiras tried to will himself to resist. Each thrust and slow gripping bounce of Renfaeda's hips further cracked his resolve.

"You want to cum some badly…but I don't think I'll let you until you beg me for it," she said with a sultry moan as she began to go even slower. She had indescribable control over her vagina's muscles as they playfully squeezed and lightly massaged him.

"Does that feel good, Seiras? Do you like it when I do this? Ooh right there. MMM," she said with suggestive gasps as she clenched on each massaging bounce.

Seiras growled angrily as he tried to free himself from his collar's stun. His resisting seemed to amuse Renfaeda greatly as she giggled evilly, "Just imagine…how good it would feel if I started moving a bit faster. All you have to do is ask me for it…"

"Curse you alien!" Seiras spat between gasps and groans. She teasingly began to go faster now which caused the unbearable pressure to build up.

"I'm amazed you haven't cum yet. You're trying so HARD…ahahaha! Maybe I'll just stop now so you don't blow your load just yet. You don't get to finish until you admit you want it," Renfaeda grinned as she stopped riding him and stayed still.

The pressure from before felt even worse now as Seiras felt his testicles clench tightly and painfully.

The feeling of this pressure and not being able to release it was terrible. Renfaeda smiled as she began to move again at an agonizingly slow pace. She spoke haughtily, "Just tell me you want it, and I'll finish you off."

Seiras ignored her as he began to speak a litany to himself, ' _What is your life?_ _My honour is my life._ _What is your fate?_ _My duty is my fate._ _What is your fear?_ _My fear is to fail._ _What is your reward?_ _My salvation is my reward._ _What is your craft?_ _My craft is death._ _What is your pledge?_ _My pledge is eternal service!'_

Renfaeda looked a bit annoyed at the Astartes for not giving in. She started moving faster now at a considerable pace and hissed at him, "Tell me you want it and I'll let you cum in me!"

' _What is your duty? To Serve the Emperor's Will! What is the Emperor's Will? That we fight and die! What is death? It is our duty!_ ' Seiras kept repeating the Astartes litanies in his mind as he resisted every heretical urge in his body.

"AGHH! FUCK! OHHH!" Renfaeda squealed as she began to go as fast as possible.

"You think you can resist me?! Cum in me now you fucking animal! AHHHH! Right there! Right there! UHHHHH!"

The following moments were all a blur to him as Seiras felt Renfaeda orgasming. She was riding him at unbelievable speed as her pussy tightened and convulsed rapidly. This rapid convulsion finally released the pressure within him as he came inside of the succubus for what felt like a full minute. The moist and sticky slapping sound of her pounding against him kept going as Seiras felt his body betray him.

"ARGHH! UHHH!" Seiras gasped as couldn't stop himself from continuously ejaculating. Despite finally hitting his orgasm, it lasted way longer than even the ones he had with the Slaaneshi cultists. Sweat was dripping from his body as he kept going with an aggressive groan.

"That's right! Breed your queen! Fuck that feels amazing!" Renfaeda howled in ecstasy. So much semen had gone into her, that it was practically flowing out of her after Seiras finished. Once it was finally over, she immediately collapsed to the ground and began to moan with satisfaction.

"I have needed this…" Renfaeda exclaimed in a blissful sigh as she crawled over on top of him again.

With the desire now fully gone, Seiras finally realized the true horror of the situation. His eyes were wide with shock and shame as Renfaeda stared at him proudly.

"This didn't just happen…I can't…I wouldn't…" he could barely believe the situation. Renfaeda had successfully mated with him.

He felt disgust and self-loathing now as he looked away from Renfaeda. She looked insufferably proud of herself as she spoke peppily, "What's the matter, Seiras? Didn't you enjoy that? Look at what you did to me, haha!"

He did not reply to her which only seemed to make her laugh more. Renfaeda spoke happily at the situation, "I hope my reward was good compensation for me killing you the other day. Keep being a good slave, and I'll fuck you whenever you want. Maybe I'll let you be on top next time…"

"I didn't want this…" Seiras finally replied with disgust in his voice.

The succubus got off of him a moment later and stood up. The oozing bodily fluids leaking from between her legs dripped across the ground as she walked over to a nearby wall of the pavilion. She then held up a strange device and showed a screen to Seiras.

He stared in absolute disbelief as it was a recording of them having sex. The succubus proudly brought it to the part where they both orgasmed and spoke proudly, "Finally some good porn for me. Be good now or I'll send this video to every Inquisitor I come across. You wouldn't want your little friends on Corun to see this, now would you?"

"No…" Seiras replied slowly.

"Did you enjoy it?" she asked. It was obvious to him that she was looking to break his will somehow through this act of depravity. With fresh blackmail against him now, Seiras was quick to realize he was going to have to give her what she wanted.

Seiras looked away distantly, "I guess I did."

"Then you wouldn't mind giving me a kiss, would you?" she goaded as she turned off the stun on his collar.

Reluctantly, Seiras sat up and indulged the twisted alien's desire as he kissed her. Unlike with his kiss with Kaerith, he didn't bother trying to resist. There wasn't any point in it anymore seeing as how he had already mated with her. He awkwardly kissed Renfaeda for bit before she finally seemed content.

Once the horror was finally over, she began to redress. He did the same as he stared blankly into the distance. This experience was probably one of the most traumatic in recent memory. Not even mating with Slaaneshi cultists had been this bad…at least they were human. He'd rather fight an army tyrannids alone than go through this again.

Part of him was beginning to finally understand why having sex against their will was so traumatic for women. Only in his case it was even worse since he as an Astartes was powerless to prevent it being done to him. Seiras couldn't describe the cringeworthy shame he felt.

This alien sadist had essentially just raped him. Seiras' mind tried to process the information for a moment as the disgusting reality was crippling his pride. _'Why couldn't I resist? I'm weak…I don't deserve to live after this heresy. What in the Emperor's name was that abominable drug she put into me? I couldn't even think straight…When she started going fast I lost all clarity and control.'_

He was drawn from his self-pity as Renfaeda spoke up again, "I'll drop you off in the Slave Chamber now. Faelan will come talk to you later, and once we get you better situated here, maybe you can even sleep in my room…if you'd like."

Seiras said nothing as he kept his gaze down. Seeing him in this somewhat traumatic state, Renfaeda simply chuckled as she began to walk away, "C'mon, Seiras…let's drop you off with the other slaves for now."

' _This xenos killed me the other day. Why did she want to mate with me? Did she do this to humiliate me? Is it to blackmail me into obedience? Is it some type of display of power and dominance? I don't understand these depraved Drukhari fiends. There's no way that she was actually attracted to me…was she?'_ Seiras thought disgusted.

He followed her for a short while in absolute silence. She pointed out occasional things or addressed several figures during their walk, but Seiras tuned out all of it. Nothing mattered to him right now…he just wanted to be alone and away from this accursed alien.

He felt a sickening regret in the pit of his stomach as he shook the thoughts of their foul intercourse out of his mind. This was even worse than his experience with Slaaneshi cultists. If he ever did escape from this accursed hell, then he was going to take this horrific and shameful secret with him to the grave.

"Ah, here we are…Slave Chamber 4. Have fun in there, and feel free to do whatever you want to the other slaves. I'll see you around Seiras," Renfaeda winked as she gestured Seiras towards a lift. She waved at him as she pressed the button causing him to descend alone.

He felt a small measure of relief getting away from her as the elevator lift descended. Upon reaching the bottom and entering the slave chamber, he heard many footsteps shuffling in his direction. This was quickly revealed to be a small mob of people and aliens looking to see why the elevator lift had moved and who the new arrival was. It was likely common for slaves and prisoners to always check out the new stock.

Their eager curiosity was quickly transformed into terror when they caught sight of the space marine getting off the elevator lift. Upon seeing Seiras, the newest arrival, several people immediately froze up. One voiced his concern immediately, "It's that space marine! He's alive! Run!"

"No fucking way! The one from the arena fight?!" someone else shouted.

As Seiras came closer, the mob dispersed and scattered like roaches. Many of the people around him were terrified when they confirmed he was an Astartes. The librarian looked around curiously at them, _'These people seem to know who I am. That's unusual…this is another slave chamber. How would they know about me?'_

The librarian shook off those thoughts as he discreetly moved to the corner of the chamber looking for a similar blind spot that he found in the previous slave chamber. He didn't take long to find it and wasted no time tucking himself into the dark corner with his back against two walls and a spiked pillar blocking any view of him. He was in pure darkness, but finally he was alone for the first time in forever.

Seiras shivered slightly as he sat there in silence for moment. He wasn't cold, but he felt a strange detoxification from the drug Renfaeda had given him. That in addition to his own disgust caused him to feel a bit sick. He braced himself through this discomfort as he began to pray his shame away.

Many hours passed presumably as Seiras allowed his mind to go blank. He was currently meditating in a half-awake state getting a bit of rest. He would occasionally hear random sounds of people coming near his dark corner, but none were actually brave enough to enter it.

He enjoyed this brief reprieve as he tried to sleep, but his mind had a difficult time filtering out the negative and horrible thoughts. Nevertheless, after many hours of prayer and litanies to remind himself of his duty, the librarian eventually regained his mental fortitude.

A short while later, the ghostly light taps of feet against the ground quickly alarmed him as he kept his eyes shut. He remained calm as he pretended not to sense it and tried to trace its approach.

' _Light footsteps…too light to be human. Someone is trying to sneak up on me. I'll move when they get closer,'_ he thought cautiously as he pretended not to notice the would-be ambusher. A second later he heard another ghostly movement. It was so light and muffled, that he could barely hear it over the sound of his own heartbeats.

' _There's two now…one two meters to my left and the other three meters to my right. They're not moving…are they having second thoughts, or have they caught on to my detection?'_ he thought concerned.

A third movement caused even greater concern as Seiras barely heard the air move. This third figure began to sneak in closer and was directly in front of him. Had he not been trained to detect the ghost steps of Aeldari aspect warriors, Seiras doubted he would have ever heard them coming.

Without hesitation or doubt, Seiras jumped to his feet and dove to the right into a forward roll. This caught his ambushers off guard as the librarian moved faster than they were expecting. Opening his eyes now, he grabbed the nearest aspect warrior and put him in a chokehold as he held him up to shield himself from the other two.

"One more step and your friend is losing his head…get back!" Seiras said commandingly.

With reluctance, the main aspect warrior that had been in front of him a moment ago took a step back. He spoke with the all-too-familiar arrogance of the Aeldari, "Release him, space marine. We're not here to fight you."

"Why should I trust a promise like that when you just tried to ambush me while I was asleep?" Seiras asked.

"If it had been our intention to ambush you, then we wouldn't be having this conversation right now," the obvious leader of the trio spoke condescendingly

Seiras' eyes were well adjusted to the darkness, and he took a moment to look the three Aeldari ambushers over.

The one he was currently holding in a chokehold had long brown hair. The one that had spoken to him had long blonde hair and he had and bronze-like eye colour. The third one was female, and she had wild medium length orange hair the color of fire. Her bright green eyes practically glowed in the dark as a sharp contrast.

Seiras examined them curiously as he looked at the markings on their heads. _'He's a Striking Scorpion, she's a Fire Dragon…those are exarch markings too. What in Terra are exarchs doing in here? Don't the Dark Eldar like keeping Aeldari as personal slaves? I seriously can't even believe the female one isn't someone's sex slave…'_

Upon thinking that, Seiras was immediately reminded of his recent indignity and quickly concluded the obvious that she had likely already had been through her fair share of 'torture'. Hell the males probably did too. Not even males were safe from getting raped in this horrible place as he had recently come to learn.

"You're Seiras, correct?" the blonde Eldar diffused the situation as he asked the librarian to confirm his identity.

"Yeah…what do you want?" the Astartes asked bluntly.

"Release Atharen…we want to talk," the Striking Scorpion exarch said calmly.

Seiras reluctantly let the aspect warrior in his chokehold go. The brown haired Eldar quickly regrouped with his allies as he turned around and eyed Seiras with cautious concern. A quick look at his head revealed that he was a Warp Spider Exarch.

' _I'm amazed I was able to grab a warp spider exarch…they're some of the most nimble and elusive. That aside, why are three exarchs in here? None of them are even from the same aspect shrine either,'_ Seiras wondered as he looked them over.

"You had better have a good reason for sneaking up on me," Seiras shook his head distastefully.

"It was our intention to be subtle. We were under the impression you were asleep, and we wanted to wake you without drawing unnecessary attention," the Striking Scorpion replied.

"Fine, what is this all about then?" Seiras asked impatiently.

"How are you alive? I wasn't aware the Drukhari could reanimate monkeigh…" the eldar shook his head.

Seiras shrugged, "I don't know…supposedly their haemonculus here is one of the most famous in Commorragh. Her name is Melisara. She's the one who brought me back."

"We've seen that haemonculus a number of times, but I wasn't aware she was Melisara," the blonde Eldar said with a bit of concern.

"What do you know of her?" Seiras asked curiously.

"From what I've heard, Melisara used to be Asdrubael Vect's haemonculus. The Archon Faelan must be paying her absurd amounts of resources and slaves to buy her services. Melisara is not easily bought. Among the Aeldari, she is known as _'The Immortal Revenant.'_ She's an evil and ancient being from before the Fall. Are you sure that's the haemonculus' name?" the Striking Scorpion stated seriously.

Seiras nodded, "Yes…the wyches mentioned it a number of times."

"What use is a space marine to them alive after being killed in the arena?" the Warp Spider, Atharen cut into the conversation.

The librarian shook his head, "All I've heard is that the Archon has plans for me. How does my fate concern any of you?"

" **He smells strange to me, Tallath…"** the fire dragon spoke in her language to the Striking Scorpion as she sniffed the air.

He glanced at her briefly, **"How so?"**

" **Like one of those wych whores. I can smell Drukhari musk on him…"** she explained with a visibly disgusted look on her face.

Tallath looked at Seiras briefly as he sniffed several times. His eyes widened when he looked at Seiras surprised. He spoke up with a bit of confusion in his voice, "Did they do anything…strange to you recently?"

"What are asking me exactly?!" Seiras pretended to be oblivious. Unfortunately, he couldn't hide the bitter shame and anger in his voice.

" **Look at how he's reacting? They definitely raped him,"** the Fire Dragon Exarch said shaking her head.

" **I did not need that visual, Ashera…"** Tallath replied to her with evident disgust on his face.

Seiras glared at them annoyed, "If you have something to say, then just say it in Gothic."

"Even space marines aren't safe from the indignities of slavery it seems…" Tallath shook his head.

"I didn't-" he tried to protest but was immediately interrupted.

The Fire Dragon, Ashera, spoke up in Gothic for the first time, "We've all been through it…me especially. Don't think I can't detect what that smell on you is, monkeigh."

Seiras was silent for a long moment as he looked away in bitter fury. He spoke with venomous anger a moment later, "Stop wasting my time! What do you want?!"

"The same thing you do…to escape this hellhole in the webway and return to our craftworld. We want your help," Tallath replied calmly.

"You want my help? Pfft…why would a craftworlder ask a human for help," Seiras scoffed.

Tallath rolled his eyes, "Believe me, it pains me to even humor the idea, but we aren't exactly in a position to turn away potential allies. You've already proven to us that you're capable of fighting the strongest Drukhari in this part of Commorragh. Unlike a normal monkeigh space marine, you're also cunning enough to sacrifice your pride to defeat an enemy. Killing Mokaela in such a way was surprisingly intelligent for one of your kind. In addition to those selling points, you're also able to use Drukhari technology…and that means you're not just useful for fighting. While I know it's unfavorable for us to work together, we could greatly benefit from your assistance."

"How do you know about me killing Mokaela? You saw my arena fight?" he shook his head surprised.

"Everyone did…the slave chambers broadcast the fights to demoralize the slaves," Atharen interjected.

"That makes sense I suppose. It would also explain why everyone was terrified of me the moment I arrived here. So…you have an escape plan already then?" Seiras asked.

Tallath nodded, "Several in fact…my best plan however would have much more favorable odds if you were involved."

"You must be desperate if you're actually asking me for help…why do I get the feeling this plan is wholly dependent on me? You would have escaped already if any of your plans were actually solid," Seiras shook his head.

Tallath glared at the librarian a bit menacingly before collecting himself, "If it were just the three of us, we could have easily escaped already…but I refuse to leave our aspect warriors behind in this place."

"So you three are the leaders, and the rest of your warriors are where exactly?" Seiras asked.

"Scattered about in different areas. The majority have been imprisoned in the…Pleasure Spire," Tallath's voice trailed off with evident malice at the mere mention of the place.

The librarian looked them over, "Are you three the only exarchs in captivity here?"

"How do you know we're exarchs?" Atharen cut in.

Pointing to the marking on their foreheads, Seiras spoke, "Gold-rune markings symbolize those lost on the Path of Khaine. You're a Striking Scorpion, He's a Warp Spider, and she's a Fire Dragon. Since you're all lost on your paths, you're not as fun to torture and you're a threat…so the Drukhari put you in here. I find it odd they didn't separate you though."

All three of them looked completely shocked by Seiras' insight into their culture and their various aspects. Tallath tilted his head at Seiras confused, "How do you know that? I've never encountered a monkeigh…let alone a space marine that knew such things."

"I…learned it from one of your kind," Seiras told the truth.

"Who in their right mind would teach a monkeigh about the shrines and the aspects?" Tallath said disbelievingly.

"His name was Prince Kalyra…he was Autarch from a Craftworld called Aldmorian. I found his spirit stone in the wreckage of that lost Craftworld on Typhon Primaris almost a century ago. He's the only survivor of that Craftworld. I kept his company for years…and he taught me a lot about your kind," Seiras explained vaguely. Mentioning the torture was probably not in his best interest.

Tallath looked shocked, "An Autarch taught you?! By Khaine, how did you convince him to do that?"

"It's a long story…I convinced him to help me in exchange for bringing him back to his own kind one day," Seiras lied.

"What became of him?" Atharen asked curiously.

Seiras looked away almost sadly, "I kept him on my armour for years. After battling a Chaos fleet, I was injured and a group of Eldar saved me…they recovered Kalyra and put him in a Wraithlord."

"Our kind rescued you? I find that difficult to believe…" the fire dragon shook her head.

"They were from a craftworld called Iybraesil. They were trying to recover a webway generator remote from the Daemon Primarch Fulgrim's fleet. I don't know why they saved me, but their farseer was named Iruna," Seiras explained.

"Iruna?! You've met Iruna?!" Tallath gawked.

"You know her?" Seiras asked.

Tallath nodded, "Yes…we're actually from Iybraesil. How crafty of her. She knew you would end up here if she saved your life."

' _She planned this far ahead? Is that even possible?!'_ Seiras wondered. He felt a bit disturbed by it that the alien's foresight was so accurate.

"Well if that's the case, then I suppose we should work together. Iruna's already proven her trustworthiness to me by saving my life. Her daughter even healed me," Seiras explained.

Tallath gawked at Seiras before giving him a dangerous glare, "Irulan's a healer now?"

"Yeah, how do you know her?" Seiras tilted his head in confusion.

"That doesn't really concern you," Tallath replied defensively.

"You're her father…aren't you?" Seiras asked knowingly. Given Tallath's reaction to her, that was the most logical option.

"I am, though I haven't seen her since she was a small child. Exarchs aren't really allowed to have families or children. It is good to know she walks the path of the healer. If she's anything like me, she would get lost on the Path of Khaine," Tallath said distantly.

In a strange way, Seiras could almost understand the alien's feelings as his own father had once possessed a similar mindset. _'He doesn't want her to become an aspect warrior like him…'_

"You can see her again when we escape and get out of here…I'll work with you. I owe my life to your craftworld," Seiras broke the awkward silence as he nodded his head respectfully.

"Very well, monkeigh…you're our ally for now. I suppose if we'll be working together, we should all introduce ourselves. My name is Tallath…Exarch of the Striking Scorpions Shrine," Tallath said with a bit more hope in his voice.

' _What are the odds I get captured and end up meeting Iruna's ex-lover. She definitely knew all of this was going to happen. If that's the case then there's a good chance she expects I can escape,'_ Seiras thought with a bit of hope.

"I'm Atharen, Exarch of the Warp Spider Shrine. Don't expect us to be friends, but we'll be civil. I can respect your skill in battle and your mental quickness at the very least," the second exarch introduced himself.

Finally, the Fire Dragon spoke, "Ashera…Fire Dragon Exarch."

"Well, you all know my name…Seiras. I'm a Deathwatch Space Marine," he responded vaguely.

"What chapter are you from?" Ashera immediately asked.

"Deathwatch," he repeated.

She shook her head, "We're not fools, Seiras…we know what Deathwatch is. What's your actual chapter?"

"The Blood Ravens…" he answered slowly.

"Never heard of them," she scoffed.

Tallath shook his head, "It doesn't matter what chapter he's from Ashera. We're allies now until we escape and go our separate ways. Besides, if Iruna saved him, we can trust him."

"Fair enough," the Fire Dragon sighed.

"So what's your plan then?" Seiras changed the subject.

"We need to free the Aspect Warriors from the Pleasure Spire. If we can get our warriors free, we'll have more than enough numbers to commandeer and pilot a ship out of here," Tallath explained.

"You can navigate this twisted realm?" Seiras asked hopefully.

Tallath nodded, "Technically yes, but if we are to escape pursuing ships, then it might be more ideal to find an actual guide. They will know all the back routes out of Commorragh and can easily get us back to Iybraesil."

"Any suggestions?" the librarian asked.

"A willing traitor would be ideal…or a harlequin. Unfortunately, those options aren't very reliable or in high abundance here. We should take hostages. A Dracon would be the most preferable target or even the hierarch himself if we can capture him," Tallath replied.

Seiras nodded, "That would work…but how do you plan to break your warriors out of captivity? What will they do then without any gear? Is there an armoury here with your weapons and armour in it?"

"As a matter of fact, there is…and it's very close to the Haemonculus' Laboratory. Your gear is probably there as well. We shouldn't attack it first though. If they catch word that we got weapons, they'll deploy half the Kabal to stop us. The best solution is for two groups to hit the tower and the armoury at the same time. We should only do so after creating a massive distraction to draw off their army. A huge distraction would allow for us to raid these two areas while the Drukhari guards are scattered," Tallath explained.

"So which one are you sending me to take care of? The distraction I take it?" Seiras asked.

"You and Ashera should break into the tower and free the others. Kill the guards and take hostages if possible. They should also have several raiders stationed there for a quick escape as well. Ashera's been there many times and knows the layout, but she'll need help against the trueborn there. You provide the muscle and help her kill the guards. She'll do the rest. Atharen and I will secure the armoury while you're doing this and set up traps. If our distraction proves useful enough, then our aspect warriors can quickly regroup at the armoury and we can get outfitted. From there we can fight our way through the Foundry and reach the docks to steal a ship. By then, I'm sure they'll be aware of our escape so speed will be of the utmost importance in this," Tallath elaborated further.

"What about his collar, Tallath?" Ashera immediately pointed out.

Seiras glanced at the orange-haired fire dragon as she reached up to feel the painful device around his neck. She shook her head, "We need to take this off of him before we escape."

"Do you know how to take these off?" Seiras asked.

Ashera nodded, "Yes, but from the looks of yours, it would take a decent amount of time to remove. If you can steal the right tools for me, I can remove it from you before the escape."

"I'll steal anything to get this damn thing off my neck. They put paralysis and a shock function on it too," Seiras said distastefully.

"It looks like an agony circuit amp is plugged into your spine…that Haemonculus must really hate you if she'd put something like this on you. The regular Psionic Limiter Collars are painful enough on high settings," Ashera remarked with disbelief as she fiddled with the collar briefly.

Seiras was surprised by her insight into the device but didn't have time to give it much thought as Tallath cut in again, "With all of that planned…the most difficult part of the escape will be creating a big enough distraction. Causing a riot or an uprising is too obvious, and that would alert the Kabal to securing the armoury and their ships. Causing a calamitous event is a better option, but it would have to be something major. I have yet to come up with a proper solution for this phase of the plan."

"I'll work on coming up with a plan for that. When I've got something decent, I'll run it by you for your approval," the librarian replied.

"Very well…for now we should avoid each other in sight of the Drukhari. They've left us alone for the most part recently, but you will likely come and go. As soon as you find out what the Archon wants with you, let us know…" Tallath stated as he began to walk away.

He briefly stopped before turning back, "One more thing you should be aware of…there is a fourth exarch here that we would like to recover. She's currently…well we'll speak of this later."

"She's what?" Seiras asked with his curiosity piqued.

Tallath glanced over at Atharen who shared a look of disappointment on his face. The Warp Spider shook his head as he remained silent. Both of them looked over at Ashera.

No words were spoken in this silent exchange, but the fire dragon seemed to understand their intent as she nodded her head. She waved them off as she spoke, "I'll explain it to him…go on without me."

The two exarchs silently and stealthily left much to Seiras' confusion. He looked at the fire dragon, Ashera with uncertainty, "Why did they leave?"

"It's difficult for them to talk about it. Archon Faelan made them watch…" Ashera's voice trailed off somewhat painfully.

"Watch what?" the space marine asked with a bit hesitation.

"The Howling Banshee Exarch…her name is Sorellia. Faelan and his Incubi…they…" Ashera couldn't even finish the sentence as she looked super upset recalling the memory.

"You don't have to describe it…" Seiras interrupted her as he shook his head, "I think I have an idea."

"Whatever you're thinking…it's worse. She wasn't like the rest of us…she didn't just accept it. She was too proud…too foolish. They broke her. I've never seen such cruelty. I wouldn't even wish that on your species," Ashera said distantly.

Serias looked at her curiously, "They didn't do the same to you?"

"I'm not as willful as she was…I gave them what they wanted when I realized I had no choice. They quickly lost interest in me because I'm not as fun to rape. They're sadistic, thrill-seeking minds found me boring in comparison to Sorellia. Incubi also have some type of hatred against Howling Banshees too. They broke Sorellia's spirit," Ashera said with distant recollection. Her bright green eyes radiated hatred in them as she maintained her emotional composure.

"How badly? Will she ever be herself again?" Seiras asked curiously.

"I don't know…if you see her here, you'll understand. We exarchs are already a bit crazy since we're lost on the Path of Khaine. Combine unspeakable trauma to a twisted, obsessive mindset like that and you'll get a very bizarre result," Ashera explained vaguely.

Seiras held his head down and nodded, "I'm already experiencing my own share of such things…I pray I can maintain my sanity and dignity in this accursed place."

"Who did it to you?" Ashera asked him curiously.

"Renfaeda…" Seiras answered slowly. Just speaking the succubus' name caused him to cringe a little.

"I'm not surprised a Drukhari succubus would enjoy such depravity. If she did it once, you can expect it again. If you're lucky, that's all you'll have to endure. Not all of the Drukhari are exclusively heterosexual." Ashera said as she stared blankly away.

"What?!" Seiras gave her a concerned look.

"Let's just say Tallath and Atharen have endured their own share of abuse too…" Ashera replied vaguely again.

"From the wyches?" Seiras asked.

"No…" she said distantly without any follow up explanation.

"So what do you intend to do about Sorellia?" Seiras changed the subject after a very awkward silence.

"We're not leaving her here to be their plaything…she needs to get back to the Craftworld. If she refuses to leave, we're taking her by force," Ashera explained.

"If she refuses to leave? Why wouldn't she want to?" he gawked.

"If you see her…you'll understand. She's barely herself anymore. Curse the Aeshul Twins! Khaine will punish them with his fiery wrath and cast them down into annihilation! Morai-Heg will judge them and they'll pay for these crimes! I'll burn them all into ash! The Widowmaker will pierce the veil and ignite this place in Khaine' fire!" Ashera immediately got incredibly angry out of nowhere.

Seiras had never seen Eldar express this type of emotional instability before and was actually fascinated by it. He actually could empathize with them much to his astonishment.

"That's too good of a fate for them…I'll throw their souls into the warp where they can be eaten by Slaanesh," Seiras said with hatred in his voice.

Ashera's green eyes lit up with bloodlust, "Yes…I want to be there when it happens. I want to watch them die! I want to see Faelan suffer."

' _I knew exarchs were a bit crazy since they got lost on the path of the warrior, but she seems downright psychotic to me. I've never seen a craftworlder lose control of their emotions like this. They must really hate these Dark Eldar,'_ Seiras thought as he nodded in approval.

After a brief and very awkward silence, Seiras began to wonder if this was the reason that Melisara put him in this specific slave chamber. _'Melisara put me here for a reason…this must have been it. Now here's the real question…how am I going to get that Ferrus Manus clone out of here during all of this? I wonder if it's even worth saving some of the humans too if we're stealing a ship.'_

"I've heard that the Archon has a null with him…a woman. Do you know anything about that?" Seiras asked Ashera drawing her from her fantasies of slaughter.

The fiery maned Eldar nodded, "Yes…Meela. She's Faelan's pet monkeigh. What's your interest in her?"

"Iruna told me to find a null…if she's a null, I have to get her out of here. What else do you know about her?" Seiras asked.

"Not much other than the fact that she doesn't speak, and nothing fazes her at all," Ashera shook her head.

"She doesn't speak? Why?" he said disbelievingly.

The fire dragon looked irritated, "You know more about nulls than I do. If it were up to me though, I'd blow her apart with a fire prism. She's an abomination. Faelan once made her stare at me for hours. He thought it was funny. Drukhari aren't psychically sensitive, so they can tolerate her presence. It's absolute torture for us to look at her though. In fact…it's probably just as bad for you too. Aren't you a psyker? Why else would you have one of those collars on? You want to find a null as a psyker? Are you crazy?!"

"It's just what Iruna told me. Apparently, I have an ability called Soul-bonding…psychic glamour. She thought it would protect me from Chaos," Seiras explained.

Ashera looked like she didn't approve, "Forget that…even if she wasn't a freak monster, that monkeigh girl wouldn't betray Faelan. He's had her for centuries apparently. Besides, there's no telling how badly she'll affect you once your take that collar off. You want my advice? Kill her and burn the body."

"You doubt Iruna's vision then?" he said uncertainly.

"What did she say exactly…tell me," Ashera practically commanded.

"She told me, 'She dances alone in sad depression. Sing for her and she will dance with you.'" Seiras answered.

Ashera's eyes lit up upon hearing that, "She dances alone in sad depression? That sounds like a Solitaire…"

"A what?" the librarian asked.

"It's a type of harlequin that is close to what you might consider our version of a null. They have no souls and an almost anti-psychic presence. They can however use their psychic abilities without any restraint. A Soltaire is the most powerful type of Eldar you'll ever encounter other than the phoenix lords. Anything short of one of your primarchs running into one wouldn't stand a chance," Ashera explained.

"So what about the dancing alone in depression thing then? What does that mean?" Seiras wondered.

"Solitaires are typically loners. They'll play Slaanesh in a Harlequin troupe's play, however," she noted.

"What's a play? Is that some type of show?" Seiras asked.

Ashera nodded, "Yes, it's a theater act where harlequins roleplay as historical or mythical figures to tell a story. Only a Solitaire can play Slaanesh though…anyone else that tries usually goes crazy. From what I've heard, Solitaires are dreadfully depressing to be around and almost everyone avoids them. I'm not sure why Iruna would tell you to sing to one…though if you happen to see a harlequin, maybe you should try it. Tallath might have a better idea what that vision means. He knows Iruna better than the rest of us," Ashera replied.

"I'll keep that in mind if I see one then," Seiras nodded.

"Come, walk with me for a moment. I want to show you something," Ashera motioned for him to follow her around his pillar and led him further towards the center of the chamber. She pointed up at the ceiling where a massive display screen of some type appeared to be. It was currently off, but Seiras was quick to realize what it was.

"Everyone in here and all of the slave chambers saw your fight from one of these screens. Seeing you alive in here will undoubtedly cause them great fear, but it could also inspire them to follow you," Ashera stated seriously.

' _I guess I never noticed that…the other chamber had one too. This is where they watched the fight,'_ he thought.

"The others didn't care enough to mention it, but there are a lot of slaves that belong to this Kabal. It would be impractical to save anyone useless, but there are a number of candidates in here that you might consider recruiting to help us. We'd have tried it already, but the slaves in here aren't exactly trusting of my kind. They do not see a difference between Aeldari and Drukhari. You on the other hand could easily convince a number of them to help," Ashera explained.

"I thought you didn't want to start a riot…" Seiras trailed off uncertainly.

"I don't…but I think it would be a waste to not recruit more help. This chamber has a number of warriors that might prove useful. Kroot would make ideal allies in escaping…though they are aligned with the Tau race. Mokaela captured a Kroot Shaper recently named Harru. He would be an invaluable ally as well and could inspire the other kroot to join us. There are also a few competent monkeigh in here that could prove useful as well. Seek them out and establish a familiarity with them. Don't let them know you're working with us though…keep that under wraps for now," Ashera continued.

Seiras nodded at the Fire Dragon as she began to walk away. She glanced back at him before leaving, "We're in the opposite corner in an elevated rafter above the other slaves…come back when you have something to report. We'll be keeping an eye on you from the shadows."

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Alright, I didn't want to end it here, but if I kept going it would have been a terrible cliffhanger. Lots of things happened this chapter so let's go over them briefly.

I'm sure many of you were expecting this any chapter now…well it's finally here. We finally got another lemon. Be warned, you're deep down the rabbit hole now. Things only get more heretical from here. This one was mild compared to some of the upcoming events.

That aside, Seiras caught some strange luck running into craftworlders from Iybraesil. They even have an escape plan already. Things seem to be looking up…but we all know it's never that easy. What horrendous things will Seiras have to endure before he can finally make it out of Commorragh? Why does Faelan want his help? Who else will Seiras recruit to help him in his escape? Stay tuned and you'll find out soon. As always, thanks for reading.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17: A Light in the Darkness**

 **A/N:** To answer a question someone had, the White Templars are an actual successor chapter of Imperial Fists that come from Segmentum Solar. I'm fairly certain they were one of the 2nd founding successor chapters. Their homeworld is Sanctum, and they have a reverse colour scheme of the Black Templars with a different cross emblem. Not much is actually known about them, but they're pretty much a similarly structured chapter to their parent legion. They're more like Imperial Fists than the extremist and religious Black Templars…though I would best describe them as some type of middle ground between the two. By that I mean they usually call their companies orders and they have like knight ranks and what not. They regard the Codex Astartes the same way the Imperial Fists do. Fun fact, there's also a Red Templars chapter.

 **Commorragh, Slave Chamber 4, Seiras**

After Ashera was gone, the librarian took a brief moment to reflect on her advice. He decided to take it immediately as he began to explore the slave chamber some more. A short stroll later, Seiras walked into the main open part of the chamber. It would be more appropriate to call it a prison yard or a slum as many people were banded together in various areas and groups with obvious segregation. They varied from gangsters, soldiers, civilians, and even a few abhumans. It was very similar to the last slave chamber, but with notable differences. This chamber had a lot more aliens than the last one. Some of them were actually unfamiliar to Seiras which was strange considering that he as Deathwatch marine was knowledgeable on many xenos races.

With determination and focus, the space marine quickly surveyed the area for anyone that might be potentially useful in his escape. To his great surprise, this slave chamber was filled with more fighters than the last one. This was likely by design as the former chamber must have been primarily civilians.

' _A decent amount of tattooed thugs in here…they're definitely hive gangers or some type of pirates. That group over there all has matching tattoos on their arms. I might look into them if I need a few extra bodies. Though I don't think they're trustworthy or dependable. I doubt any of them could keep a secret either,'_ Seiras thought as he briefly eyed the thugs.

Unlike the ones in the last chamber, these guys didn't seem to doubt that he was an Astartes. One looked petrified when he made eye contact with Seiras and froze up instantly. The librarian gave them a look of disgust, _'If they're anything like the overseers in the last slave chamber, then I don't want anything to do with them. Granted I doubt a group like that would have much success in here.'_

A moment later, something caught Seiras' attention when he noticed a group of four kabalites. They were currently dragging a woman away from one of the groups. Normally, Seiras wouldn't have cared, but this group of people looked like Imperial Guardsmen due to their iconic flak armour that they were still wearing.

"Major!" one of the guardsmen shouted as the restrained woman was pulled away from them. One of the kabalites pulled her head back and held a blade to her cheek.

He spoke sadistically to the nearby soldiers, "Not a step closer, monkeigh, or I'll carve off her face!"

"Let her go you alien filth!" the vocal guardsmen shouted at them.

The four Drukhari kabalites were all wearing prestigious armour, and Seiras quickly identified that they were trueborn. He found it strange that they were in here and even more unusual that they targeted these guardsmen.

The vocal guardsmen angrily charged in as he tried to tackle one of the kabalites. Despite his best effort, one of the trueborn kicked him to the group. He then proceeded to pull out a shock rod as he beat the downed man with brutality.

"Hey, you no hurt Sarge!" a loud and deep voice followed.

Seiras watched with surprise when he spotted an Ogryn with these guardsmen. The massive abhuman ran in to help the downed man, but despite his large size and strength, he was hopelessly slow at fighting three of the kabalites as they circled around him and beat him down with weapons.

The leader of this small group of Dark Eldar kept the major in his grasp still and spoke loudly, "Enough of this petty resistance! One more outburst and I'll rape her in front of you!"

"Khrem, stand down! You too sergeant!" another man's voice sounded.

The voice was immediately identified as a commissar's. Seiras was surprised that the man still had his uniform on. With reluctance, the ogryn and the angry sergeant both remained on the ground and unmoving as the Dark Eldar group smugly took the officer away. One watched the rear with a splinter rifle while the other three turned around to exit the chamber. All of them stopped in their tracks and looked shocked when they saw Seiras in front of them. The four kabalites looked noticeably concerned as they didn't move or respond for a moment.

All of the nearby guardsmen also perked up with shock when they spotted the librarian blocking the Dark Eldar. Finally, the leader of the kabalities growled at Seiras, "Out of the way, monkeigh! You don't want to get involved in this!"

Taking a single step forward, Seiras shook his head, "Why is that?"

"I thought Renfaeda killed this monkeigh…why is he alive?!" one of the others spoke in gothic to the leader.

"You thought wrong," Seiras countered with a dark tone.

The trueborn were undoubtedly scared as the librarian walked closer towards them. As he came in a body's length of them, three of them held up their weapons defensively.

"Get the fuck back, space marine! We'll gun you down if you try anything stupid!" one of them shouted.

"Trueborn…I take it none of you were on Corun were you? I doubt you'd be pointing weapons at me otherwise," Seiras said with disgust.

They all traded concerned looks with one another as they tried to circle around Seiras with their hostage. As they attempted to pass him, Seiras side stepped to block them.

"Where do you think you're going?" Seiras asked them dangerously as he blocked them two additional times from passing him.

"Move, or this bitch dies!" their leader threatened as he held the blade up to the major's face causing a light cut over her cheek.

Seiras blankly stared at them with indifference, "Whether you kill her or not, you're not getting past me."

"Fuck you! Kill him!" their leader shouted to the other three.

All of them began to open fire with their weapons but were unable to hit Seiras as the Astartes juked left and charged. He ran through their group knocking three of them down with relative ease.

They all split apart into different angles to shoot him again but were too slow to react as Seiras grabbed one of them to use as a meat shield. Holding the kabalite up, Seiras blocked a number of their splinter rounds. His meat shield didn't last long to the friendly fire and was quickly discarded as Seiras came charging in again. He reached another warrior and immediately ripped the rifle out of his grip before elbowing him in the face.

The disarmed kabalite went flying as blood spewed out of his mouth. Before he even reached the ground, Seiras shot him midair several times and immediately spun around firing onto the third kabalite that was attacking him. With precise shots, managed to injure the trueborn. Before the alien could recover, he went charging into melee range.

The injured kabalite looked up with horror just in time to see Seiras grab him by the head. With furious force, the Astartes snapped his neck and tossed him aside. The kabalite leader was already fleeing at this point with his hostage over his shoulder.

He threw a grenade back to stop Seiras as the space marine came barreling after him. The dark eldar moved with remarkable speed. It was almost comparable to a wych's. As the blast cleared from his grenade, he briefly looked back in confusion when he didn't see Seiras. Deciding not to concern himself with it, the surviving trueborn bolted as fast as he could.

His hopes for escape were cut short as a massive blur blindsided him out of nowhere. He and the human woman that was on his shoulders both went flying to the ground from the tremendous force.

The trueborn kabalite quickly got up and noticed his former hostage trying to move away from him. He didn't have the chance to reacquire her as Seiras ran in to kill him. The Astartes was wielding one of the other kabalite's daggers now and had a bloodthirsty look on his face. The trueborn leader drew his shredder rifle and began to open fire with unrestrained ferocity to force the librarian back.

His shots were ineffective as Seiras moved faster than he could anticipate. The librarian easily snatched the rifle out of his grip and tossed it a considerable distance away. The female guardsman hostage wasted no time going after the weapon as Seiras and the kabalite got into a brief knife fight.

Swinging his own dagger with furious speed, the kabalite did his best to fight Seiras in melee combat. Unfortunately for him, he was hopelessly slow and pathetic against the Astartes.

After a feeble missed stab, he felt Seiras grab his arm. Squeezing with full force, the librarian twisted the alien's forearm around causing him to shriek in agony. The dagger in his grip fell out of his hand a moment later.

"The archon won't be too pleased when he hears about this! You won't get away with killing me!" the trueborn threatened.

"Somehow I doubt Faelan will care…I watched him laugh as I murdered his own men on Corun. I hope you enjoy whatever Slaanesh has in store for you, Eldar…" Seiras said darkly as he began to carve off part of the kabalite's face.

"ARGHHH!" he screamed in pain as Seiras scalped his head. The screaming was extremely loud as it echoed for nearby slaves to hear.

After carving off half of the flesh on the kabalite's head, Seiras then stabbed him in the throat to kill him. He followed up by lifting the body off the ground and impaling it against the closest pillar.

' _Maybe now they'll think twice about coming in here again,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he walked away from the impaled corpse.

To his surprise, the female major was still standing nearby. She had the shredder rifle in her hands. He expected her to be shaken and fearful, but she looked mostly calm. The other guardsmen seemed to be looting weapons from the dead kabalites. They all slowly approached Seiras but were noticeably concerned about how he would react to them.

"You have my thanks, space marine. I heard you were in this chamber, but I didn't expect you to help us." The female major broke the awkward silence as she addressed him.

He looked at her curiously for a moment. She had purple eyes and medium length blonde hair that barely touched her shoulders. Seiras found her eye color curious, _'Purple eyes? That's not a natural color for a regular human.'_

"No need to thank me…I would have killed them regardless," Seiras replied as he looked over the guardswoman.

She sighed, "You have no idea how grateful we are though. That group's been taking all of our officers away one at a time. Maybe now they'll think twice about fucking with us."

"How many of you are left?" Seiras asked.

"Our last headcount was 48, but they took our commander and a number of others for one of the arena fights. We're down to 37 now if you include our ogryn," the nearby commissar interjected as he walked up to the Astartes.

He had green eyes and faded brown hair from what Seiras could see under his cap.

Looking closer at the other guardsmen now, Seiras tried to identify their regiment, _'127th…and that looks like the Cadian emblem on their flak armour too. These guys are Cadians? No wonder they're not shitting themselves in fear. Almost half of them have purple eyes. That's strange.'_

"You're Cadians, yes? How did you end up here?" Seiras asked.

"We're from the 127th Cadian Regiment. We were sent to respond to a forgeworld that stopped paying its tithes…seemed like a routine order restoration campaign until these damned Eldar ambushed our fleet. They captured a lot of the brass…all of them are dead. Our commanding officer Colonel Kalum was the last high-ranking officer besides me. I'm his XO Major Arika Medina. This is Commissar Duncan Kavka…we're the last two officers from our regiment."

"What happened to Colonel Kalum?" Seiras asked the woman.

She looked away briefly before answering, "His arms and legs were cut off in the arena and he was strung up…you killed him a spear during your fight in the arena."

' _Wait…that guy I killed was a Cadian Colonel? Damn…that's a shame,'_ Seiras thought briefly.

"I see…" Seiras trailed off as he didn't know how to respond to that information. A normal person might have apologized, but he didn't.

"We don't take that personally just so you know. You gave him a clean death. You have our thanks for that. The colonel deserved better than to be mutilated by those alien bitches. Other than the commissar and myself, the rest here are just grunts and a few veteran sergeants. That ogron with us is Khrem." Major Medina followed up.

The ogryn Khrem finally regrouped with them as he walked over and spoke, "You big like me. You faster though!"

"He's a space marine Khrem...one of the Emperor's Angels of Death," the Commissar explained calmly.

"You...Space marine?! He from vid fight right?!" the ogryn sounded amazed.

The commissar nodded, "Yes, he is."

 _'Ogryns aren't intelligent, but they're damn strong. He's bigger and stronger than me. I could definitely use some muscle like that,'_ Seiras thought approvingly.

"How long have you been here, major?" Seiras asked after a brief silence.

"I couldn't say, my lord. Probably a few solar weeks. There were a lot more of us when we first got here, but we're down to about ten percent of our original numbers. Most have been taken to the arenas to fight…a few of the female troops were taken as pets by kabalites. I assumed that was likely my fate before you arrived," Major Medina answered.

' _I'm surprised they waited that long to take a female officer. She's luckier than most in here,'_ the librarian thought as he nodded silently.

"Has the haemonculus taken any of you away?" Seiras asked curiously.

"You're talking about the one with the extra arms that floats around? The really creepy looking one? She comes by every now and then and takes a lot of slaves. They never come back. She took a few of ours when we first got here, but it's mostly the wyches and the kabalites that mess with us," the major replied a bit grimly.

"Pray that you don't suffer that fate…I've seen her lab. It's the last place you want to go." Seiras replied as he looked them over silently again.

' _These Cadians will make useful allies in my escape, but I don't know if it's in my best interest to ally with them this early. They're trustworthy, but it could make them targets and bite me in the ass if I reveal too much information to them. I suppose the best option is to keep them on a need to know basis. At the very least, I should establish a rapport with these guardsmen.'_ Seiras thought logically.

"My name is Seiras, I'm a Deathwatch Astartes," Seiras told them a vague shred of information.

"Deathwatch? You're with the Ordo Xenos then?" Commissar Kavka cut into the conversation.

Seiras nodded, "I am typically, but my Kill Team was assigned to an Ordo Malleus inquisitor as backup. We were tasked to fight a fleet of traitor Astartes along with a company of Imperial Fists and White Templars."

"Interesting, but I suppose the Ordo Malleus needs all the help it can get now with the Black Crusade tearing across the galaxy…" the commissar noted.

"Across the galaxy? I wasn't aware it had reached that far. We repelled an invasion fleet in the Armageddon Sector in the Justicar Sub-sector, but that's the only major attack I've heard of. Has their crusade actually passed Cadia?" Seiras asked confused.

They all looked at each other a bit surprised by Seiras' question. Major Medina shook her head a moment later, "You haven't heard? Cadia was destroyed…I'm surprised you didn't know that if you were with an Inquisitor."

"What?! How?!" Seiras said with disbelief.

The major shook her head, "Abaddon the Despoiler crashed a Blackstone Fortress into the planet. It tore a warp rift across the entire galaxy. How have you not heard about this?"

"I…don't know," Seiras said disbelievingly.

' _This definitely explains the abnormal warpstorms,'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"You must have been on the good side of the warp rift, because the other side of the Imperium is cut off from the Astronomican," she said grimly.

Seiras shook his head, "Were any of you at Cadia when it fell? Why would the Imperium have you quelling a forgeworld when Cadia's gone?"

"That's just it…the forgeworld we were on stopped paying their tithes because they were captured by Chaos forces. We were trying to keep them contained but these damnable Eldar took advantage of our weakened state and kidnapped our regiment's leaders," Commissar Kavka added.

' _Cadia's fallen…I can't believe it. This Black Crusade has gotten even worse! I have to get this Ferrus Manus clone out of here. It's going to take a primarch's help to stop Chaos at this rate…'_ the librarian thought with concern.

Before Seiras could say anything in response, one of the sergeants joined the conversation, "Lord Seiras, do you think it's possible to escape from this place?"

Seiras glanced at the man briefly before nodding, "Yes, but it's going to take subtlety and patience. We're in the webway after all and only Eldar know how to navigate it."

"Wait, you think it's possible to escape?" Major Medina gawked.

The librarian nodded, "With a ship and a dependable force of combatants, it is possible. Though, it would require an Eldar pilot to escape the Webway."

"So it's not possible then? Where the hell would we ever find an Eldar willing to pilot us out of here?" the sergeant sighed in disappointment.

"Even if we could, that's heresy…" the commissar interjected dangerously.

Seiras looked at the man and sighed, "Indeed it is…but I'd rather face a charge of heresy than be trapped in this accursed hellhole and tortured for the rest of my life."

"You're suggesting we work with Eldar to escape? Even if it did work, we wouldn't be able to trust them. Not to mention, we'd be executed the moment we returned to the Imperium." Major Medina whispered furiously with disbelieving eyes.

"I'm with the Ordo Xenos, I can get you all exonerated. I've probably killed more aliens than your entire regiment, so I doubt anyone short of an Inquisitor would question my defense of a willingness to improvise. We're in an unconventional situation and it requires an unconventional solution. I don't like it anymore than you do, but it's the only real option we have," Seiras explained convincingly.

The commissar looked unconvinced, "You're seriously telling us to work with xenos?"

"I'm not ordering you to do anything…I'm not your commander. All I'm saying is we're not getting out of the webway without an Eldar's help. Heresy or not, I have no intention of staying here for long. I would welcome you as allies, but I have no qualms about leaving you here if you can't follow my plan," Seiras stated quietly and sternly.

"It's your call, Major Medina. Morally, I can't agree with it but logically it's the only solution," Commissar Kavka said grimly.

Major Medina sighed as she looked over at Commissar Kavka, "He's an Astartes, and he's with the Inquisition. I'd never suggest it myself, but if he thinks it's possible, then we should consider it. I want your word that we won't be tried as heretics if we escape though…do I have it, my lord?"

Seiras nodded, "You have my word as an Astartes. I'll defend your integrity to anyone if they question you. If we're to be sentenced as heretics then I'll gladly die with you."

"Well with that settled, there's a gaping issue with this plan. How in the warp are you going to convince an Eldar to help us? Those smug knife-eared aliens would gladly sacrifice all of us without a second thought." Major Medina shook her head.

The librarian was silent for a moment before answering, "There are craftworld slaves in this Kabal. I'm certain I can convince some to work with us."

"You seriously think we can trust Craftworlders?" the commissar asked.

"They want to escape Commorragh just as much as we do. I'm certain they'd welcome any help in getting out of here. We can all go our separate ways afterward," the librarian explained.

Kavka frowned, "Yeah, but what if they try to betray us once we're clear?"

"Then I'll kill every last one of them. I'm a psyker…so once this collar comes off my neck, nothing in this place is going to be able to kill me," Seiras reassured them.

Major Medina looked at him confused, "A space marine psyker? You're a librarian then?! Why didn't you use any psychic powers in your arena fight?"

"This collar negates psychic ability. The moment it comes off, I'll be much harder to kill," he convinced them further.

"You've made your point then, Lord Seiras…we're yours to command. What should we do in the mean time?" Medina asked anxiously.

"For now, just stay out of trouble and don't draw attention to yourselves. I doubt any kabalites are going to want to come in here after I killed those four. Also, it's best to keep the plan a secret. For your own safety, I am going to keep you on a need to know basis…just be ready to act when I call for you," Seiras explained.

They all nodded as the major responded, "Understood, my lord. We'll try to keep a low profile."

"Good…I'm only trusting you because you're Cadians. Don't disappoint me," Seiras responded sternly.

"Lord Seiras, what about the PDF forces in here? Do you think it's a good idea to recruit any other humans to escape with?" Major Medina asked.

"It all just depends on how things turn out. Most of them are dead weight, but if the scenario presents itself, I won't object to their help. Just don't get any delusions of saving a lot of people," he sighed.

"As you say, my lord. We'll do some scouting around and find out if anyone else is worth taking. We'll be discreet," she nodded.

"I can't believe these xenos even captured you in the first place. Judging by the way you killed them without your power armour, I can't even imagine a platoon of those guys overwhelming you…especially if you had other Astartes with you," the same sergeant from before changed the subject.

"I got separated from the others and I got captured by the archon and his personal retinue. Even despite our reputations, space marines are still human. We still make mistakes," Seiras said distantly.

"You're tough as hell, I'll give you that. I was convinced you were dead after that last wych stabbed you in the chest," the man noted.

Seiras ignored the comment as he began to depart, "We'll speak again later. I'm going to continue my recruitment."

"Emperor watch over you," Major Medina replied as the librarian left.

As Seiras walked away, he noticed quite a few nearby onlookers that had been watching the interaction. He doubted any of them were able to hear the quiet conversation he and the guardsmen had, but they were definitely curious as a few immediately tried to go and speak to the Cadians.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Seiras continued wandering around for another few minutes spotting other various human gangs and xenos huddles here and there. Currently, he was trying to find the Kroot Shaper that Ashera mentioned.

Eventually, he spotted a large gathering of Kroot sitting together in a circle at the other end of the chamber. Tau of various castes were unsurprisingly close to them for protection. Part of him always detested that the stronger race was subservient to the weaker one. Tau were very pathetic without their technology, and many lacked a real killer instinct. Kroot on the other hand were legitimate xenos warriors and proved dangerous for regular humans even without weapons. While he wasn't fond of any xenos, Seiras had a much higher opinion on Kroot than most alien races.

This further section of the slave chamber appeared mostly inhabited by non-humans. The nearby aliens appeared especially wary of Seiras' arrival in their personal area. This was no doubt exacerbated by the flesh blood stains covering him. Some of them had probably already heard about him killing the kabalites as well. Seiras briefly glanced at a smaller group of Tau and Kroot twenty meters away from him in some type of private cell room.

They all froze and went wide-eyed as Seiras looked inside at them for a moment, _'Mostly Fire warriors by the looks of it. The two tall frail ones must be their air caste pilots. A few earth caste judging by their stature. Three water caste.'_

Seiras had a small measure of understanding when it came to the Tau. With his home sector being close to Ultramar, he had seen these xenos more than most space marines typically would. That was even before he joined the Deathwatch. He knew what the Greater Good was and he knew the difference between the various castes. Fire Caste was the warrior caste. Earth caste were the builders, engineers, scientists, and artisans. Water caste were the traders, entertainers, and politicians. Air caste were the explorers, pilots, and naval force of the Tau. He wasn't very familiar with Earth or Water castes as they were both civilian castes, but he was aware of their various physiological differences. His slaughter of the civilian Tau on Kronus had given him a decent exposure to them.

' _I wonder why these Tau are sitting away from that other big group? Even the various Kroot with them are separated. These ones seem to have matching symbols on their clothing. Their skin color seems a bit darker too. I don't see a Kroot shaper in that big group over there. One of the ones in this smaller group might he him,'_ Seiras noticed as he stared at them for a moment.

They all seemed a bit hesitant to say anything or even move as an awkward tension followed. Seiras briefly glanced over at the other Tau group at the far end of the chamber. They were all staring in his direction as well. No doubt they were wondering why he was eyeing up the other Tau group.

The nearby smaller group of Tau seemed to finally understand Seiras' reason for staring as they saw him look between the two groups. One of them actually approached him much to the shock of the others. He could barely believe the xenos' bravery as this one wasn't even a fire warrior…it was a water caste female.

"Is there some way we can help you, Gue'ron'sha? Your presence over here is distressing our warriors." the female water caste Tau asked him in gothic. She spoke the language remarkably well much to his surprise. He didn't know what the word she spoke meant, but he quickly figured it must have been their word for space marine.

"Why are you all sitting in here away from the rest of your kind? Doesn't your race believe in complete unity?" Seiras asked the alien.

Despite his usual hatred and skepticism for xenos, he wasn't in the mood to be his usual Astartes self right now. He knew that he had to be civil in this slave chamber and look for information and potential allies. That included aliens as well as humans.

' _Melisara sent me here for a reason…I should learn all I can about the inhabitants in this chamber and find any more allies possible. The Exarchs seem to think the Kroot will be a big help…what do I have to lose by trying to recruit them?'_ Seiras thought to himself.

"We are from the Farsight Enclaves. We are followers of O'Shovah. Your Imperium knows him better as Commander Farsight. We are a splinter faction from one of the expansion spheres that lost our Ethereal guidance. Ever since then, we have diverged from the main faction. O'Shovah believes that the way to the Greater Good lies away from the control of the Ethereals. The others over there disagree and so they do not like or trust us. We remain civil with each other, but we've agreed to separate," the xenos explained articulately.

' _I've heard of the Farsight Enclaves…I didn't realize they were a splinter faction of Tau. It's hard to imagine a schism among these pious xenos. The Ethereals must control them somehow then. I remember how drastically the Tau we killed on Kronus retreated and broke when their Ethereal died. Strange…'_ Seiras thought to himself for a moment.

"How did you end up here?" Seiras asked her.

The water caste female glanced back at her group of twenty or so followers before speaking, "I was an Ambassador for O'Shovah. We were seeking to contact the Imperium about the growing threat of the Tyrannids as you Gue'la have termed them. Before we reached our destination, a raiding party of these aliens captured us and brought us here. I must admit I found it surprising that the Eldar would commit such heinous atrocities and enslave other races like this. I had previously assumed they were one of the few reasonable races in this galaxy."

"These are Dark Eldar…Drukhari. They're not the same as Craftworlders or the Aeldari as they call themselves. All of them have access to the webway though. They're two different factions of the same race but millennia of separation have caused them to diverge into sub-species," Seiras explained.

"I see…I was beginning to notice a disparity between these ones and others we've seen before. Oh, forgive me I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Por'O'Vior'la Kim'ria…Ambassador to the Farsight Enclaves," she introduced herself.

Seiras blankly looked at her before responding, "I didn't ask for your name, Tau."

"Yet, you seemed civil enough to converse with us. Forgive me if I offended you, but I thought it would be ruder to not introduce myself," she replied civilly.

' _I really don't care what her damn name is, but for the sake of this plan I should at least try to be civil,'_ the Astartes sighed mentally.

"Por'O'Vior'la Kim'ria? Is that entire thing your name or is it a list of titles and surnames?" he asked.

"It refers to rank, caste, home of origin, and the personal name," she answered politely.

 _'Whatever…I'll just call her ambassador or something if I have to,'_ Seiras thought carelessly.

"I suppose my full name might seem a bit long to a Gue'la. It is typically uncourteous to refer to one by their personal name unless you are well acquainted, but I will allow you to use mine for simplicity's sake…you may call me Kim'ria if you wish Gue'ron'sha," she responded diplomatically.

He looked this water caste female over for a moment and examined her appearance. She was distinguishable from the others given long and elaborate hair. It was an almost a blackish purple color and was braided in bizarre ways. With multiple tails coming from two swirled buns on the side of her head. Hairstyles like this were only really common among civilian Tau as most fire warriors had none at all or some type of ponyails. Her skin was a cyan color, but it appeared slightly darker in complexion than former water caste Tau he had seen on Kronus. He quickly figured that the Farsight Enclave Tau must have had naturally darker complexions as all of the ones in this group looked a bit darker. In addition to her elaborate hair, the alien had deep blue eyes which seemed somewhat unique on a Tau.

' _I'm shocked she can maintain a somewhat regal appearance in this shithole…the Dark Eldar haven't even touched her by the looks of it.'_ Seiras thought bewildered.

Seiras turned his gaze to her nearby allies and looked them over as well. They all seemed amazed that he was talking Kim'ria in a non-threatening way. He quickly counted them, _'Nine fire caste…6 males and 3 females. Two air caste…one male and one female. Three water caste…two females and one male. 4 earth caste…three male one female. 6 Kroot…all male. That one in the back looks bigger than the others and he's wearing a robe. He must be the shaper!'_

"Your name is Seiras, correct? Forgive me if I pronounced it incorrectly," Kim'ra broke the following silence catching his attention again.

He looked at her surprised, "How do you know my name?"

"The Eldar female called you that during the arena battle," she quickly clarified.

The Astartes nodded, "Oh, that makes sense. You're surprisingly observant if you remembered that."

Despite obscurely standing by the entrance to this particular chamber cell, Seiras could still see a number of onlookers gossiping and staring at him from a distance. He didn't know who looked more shocked between the few humans on this side of the chamber or the main faction of Tau. Many of the watchers looked noticeably nervous and curious.

Nevertheless, Seiras doubted anyone in here wanted to risk his wrath. The fact that they could see him walking around alive after Renfaeda killed him was also probably a matter of grave concern.

Seiras tilted his head as he looked back at Kim'ria confused, "I'm surprised you have the nerve to even speak to me if you saw what I did to those wyches in the arena and the kabalites that that were in here. Even my own kind have been avoiding me for the most part."

"I don't really condone such brutality, but I'm not a warrior. It may sound hateful to say, but I believe those eldar deserved what you did to them. The one whose head you crushed in the arena led the assault that captured us. I did not celebrate her death, but I do approve of it for the Greater Good. Her interruption in our mission has vastly delayed diplomatic communications with the Imperium. It will bring about countless deaths that could have been prevented," she replied.

' _You won't be so happy when you see Mokaela alive again…'_ Seiras thought disgusted.

"To be honest, I am amazed to see you are still alive. After that last one took you down, I was convinced you were dead. Truly you space marines are impressive warriors. I can see why the Gue'la hold you in such high regard now," Kim'ria added after a silent pause.

Seiras shrugged, "It might have been better if I did die…being a slave in this place is one of the worst fates in the galaxy."

"It's rather abhorrent what they do to people in here. I just don't understand why a race would do this to others and even their own kind," Kim'ria shook her head.

"Why haven't they done anything to you or your group yet?" Seiras asked. It was obvious to him that they were untouched given how none of them were scarred, crippled, or looked completely hopeless.

Kim'ria shook her head, "I'm not sure. Maybe it's just because we haven't been here for very long. The monstrous Eldar with multiple arms that they call the Haemonculus observed us several times but never did anything. She might be saving us for later…"

' _Melisara didn't mess with these guys? Did she really expect me to ally with all these Tau and Kroot too? That can't be a coincidence. Melisara's planned this far ahead?'_ his thoughts trailed off for a moment.

"Are you the leader here?" Seiras asked as he looked between Kim'ria and the Farsight Tau behind her.

"As ambassador I have authority over all matters excluding military and battle. I am the highest-ranking Tau here though…so the others have been looking to me for administrative leadership. The Kroot Shaper Harru is also a high-ranking member of our group. We were separated from the Fire Caste Commander we came with. Between the two of us, we've been working on getting out of here," she stated calmly.

The space marine looked away for a moment as he pondered the situation, _'There has to be a reason Melisara didn't touch them. Ashera thinks the Kroot will be useful if I recruit Harru. Though that means these Tau have to come along too. I don't want to recruit too many aliens…they can't be trusted. Not to mention, how would the guardsmen react to seeing me ally with all these aliens? I guess they'll just have to get over it.'_

"May I ask you a few questions, Seiras?" Kim'ria drew him from his thoughts.

"Ask…but don't expect answers for every question," Seiras stated coldly.

She nodded before speaking, "What chapter are you from?"

"You know about chapters? You're better informed than I expected. I'm a Blood Raven," he answered.

"Blood Raven? I have heard horrible things about that chapter. They sieged the great city of Tash'n on Kronus…they killed the ethereal Aun'El Shi'Ores and slaughtered countless civilians," she said with widened eyes.

"I was there with the fourth company. We slaughtered half that city and left the other half to cannibalize itself," Seiras replied with stoic coldness.

Kim'ria eyed Seiras for a moment with a bit of anxious fear, "I am surprised that you would even speak to us then considering your history of murdering our kind."

"That hardly matters here since we're all slaves right now. I have nothing to gain by slaughtering your kind in this place," he stated logically.

"Fair point…though I am saddened to know that you bear hatred for the Tau. It is such a waste that our two empires cannot coexist peacefully," Kim'ria said sadly.

Seiras scoffed at her, "Last I heard, your 'Empire' had several hundred planets. The Imperium stretches across the galaxy and has over a million. To compare yourselves to us is insulting. You're not even half as big as Ultramar."

She stared at him disbelievingly, "A million worlds? Truly? I must admit I find that difficult to believe."

"You should believe it. The Emperor and his space marine legions conquered most of the galaxy during the Great Crusade over ten thousand years ago…and before that humanity rivaled the Eldar Empire in the Dark Age of Technology. Our kind has existed and ruled the stars since before yours even invented fire and tools. Your race might be prosperous, but you haven't faced any real horrors in the galaxy. Mankind holds the darkness at bay. Chaos…orks…necrons…tyrannids…even these depraved dark eldar. Your kind hasn't even scratched the surface on how horrible and cruel this galaxy is. Take a look around you…this is a taste of the hell we live in," he followed.

"Forgive my ignorance on the matter then. Commander Farsight has spoken numerously about just how massive the Imperium is and why they haven't actually tried to destroy us yet. He encourages us to learn from your kind and to ally with you whenever possible. He believes none of us will survive unless we unite against the darkness for the Greater Good," Kim'ria replied.

"There is no Greater Good…there is only war," he scoffed at her.

"The night is always darkest before the dawn. The Greater Good is about more than-" before she could continue, Seiras immediately stopped her.

"Spare me the speech. It might sound pretty to some backwater humans on a forgotten world, but I'm a space marine. I'll never trust the good of humanity's future to aliens…that's no better than slavery in my eyes. It's an insult to the Emperor and all he stood for," Seiras interrupted with disapproval.

She frowned at his statement but quickly let it go as she changed the subject, "It is not my intention to offend you, but I would prefer that we be allies in this place. Whether you believe in it or not, all of us coming together to stem the tide of darkness is for the Greater Good…not just for Tau, but everyone."

Under normal circumstances he would have either murdered them or completely avoided them altogether. However, given her earlier comment about working on escaping, he decided to humor the idea. He was already up to his neck in heresy…what was the point in avoiding working with more aliens?

"Allying with you is exactly why I came over here. If you're adamant about escaping, then I'd be more than willing to work with you…" Seiras spoke quietly.

Kim'ria seemed relieved but confused by his words, "Really? After saying all of that, you claim you're here to help us?"

He nodded, "It'd be more accurate to say you're helping me, but yes."

"Ambassador, are you sure it's a good idea to trust a Gue'ron'sha? He just admitted to slaughtering Tau on Kronus. How can we be sure he won't betray us?" an overzealous fire warrior interrupted them.

"I'm surprised you would ask for our help considering your capabilities. What would this entail, and do you have any way of reassuring our warriors that you won't kill us?" she asked diplomatically.

"I intend to recruit Aeldari slaves as well…it's going to take one of their kind to navigate out of the webway. I also need individuals that can fight. Your kroot warriors would be useful, and I could use your long-range firepower as well," he explained.

Kim'ria looked back at the Kroot Shaper and gestured for him to come over, "Harru, what do you think?"

The Kroot shaper walked over and looked up at Seiras with calm wisdom. He turned towards Kim'ria a moment later, "He killed the wych that captured us and is clearly no friend of these 'Dark Eldar.' I have never heard of a space marine willing to ally with non-humans, but I would be willing to accept the offer once he's proven we can trust him."

"How would you like me to do that?" Seiras asked them calmly.

"We need time to talk about this…come back later, and we'll have an answer for you," Harru responded.

Seiras nodded at the alien as he turned to leave. He sighed mentally as he reflected on the prior event, _'I seriously can't believe I'm recruiting Tau and Kroot to help me escape. What's next? Am I going to find an orc warboss or a necron to recruit? Am I going to ride out of here on the back of a carnifex? Why don't I just summon a bunch of daemons too while I'm at it…wait.'_

Upon thinking that, Seiras' eyes lit up as a dangerously heretical thought filled his mind, _'Summoning daemons would be a big enough distraction…though I don't know if that's a good idea. The craftworlders would never approve, but it is a possibility if I can remove this collar. Maybe I should save that for a last resort…in case things go to hell. One way or another, I'm getting out of this Emperor forsaken place.'_

As he wandered back past the Cadians, Seiras was surprised to see more Drukhari in the chamber now. There were only two of them, but they were not kabalites, wyches, or wracks.

' _Incubi? What are they doing in here?!'_ the Blood Raven thought alarmed as he slowly approached the black clad duo.

Both of the fearsome warriors had full-face tormentor helmets with horns and a scorpion tailed splinter gun that coiled over the top. Of the two incubi, one was larger than the other, and they each carried different weapons. The larger one had a massive Klaive that he carried with both hands. The other was wielding two demiklaives…one in each hand.

They appeared to be investigating the scene of Seiras' earlier massacre of the dead trueborn. They didn't speak and they showed zero interest in the nearby Cadians or other slaves. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they were looking for something…or someone rather.

Both warriors quickly spotted Seiras as he came into view and approached him. Dead silence filled the slave chamber as nobody seemed brave enough to make a sound.

Seiras stopped in front of the two incubi and stared at them briefly, _'I wonder what they want? Are they here to bring me to Faelan?'_

The larger of the two warriors gestured for Seiras to follow them as he turned around and began to start walking. The librarian didn't move as he watched the incubus turn around after a few steps.

A moment later, Seiras saw the other incubus walk behind him as he jabbed him forward with one of the Demiklaives. Taking the hint, Seiras caught up to the front incubus and after a moment, both were flanking either side of him.

They walked to the elevator lift without saying a word which only left Seiras to dread the upcoming meeting with Archon Faelan.

 **Kabal Spire, Throne Room**

After a long and silent trip, Seiras and his incubi escort finally arrived at their destination. Neither warrior had spoken one word to him, each other, or the various Drukhari they passed along the way. The only notable event that happened on the trip was the smaller incubus killing someone for asking a question.

As they entered Faelan's throne room, Seiras took in the surroundings with curious interest. The better part of the walk had been spent imagining what this place would look like, but nothing in his imagination came close to the reality. It was ornate and fancy in a sense, but also twisted and gross. Tapestries of flesh decorated the wall and spikes seemed all too common. Furniture was spread around the room and there was even a table in there. Seiras also couldn't help but notice a number of heads decorating various spikes all throughout the throneroom.

Examining the room's inhabitants, he saw he rest of the incubi were positioned around the room in strategic locations. Several were directly next to Faelan's throne. The archon was currently seated at his throne with a host of half-naked slaves all around the room.

The same red-haired woman that Seiras had previously seen on his ravager was sitting directly at Faelan's feet with a collar over her neck. She wore a bright red loincloth skirt that barely reached her knees. She had some type of promiscuous corset on that was open in the front and back. It loosely covered her bust as it wrapped around the collar on her neck. It was barely laced together in the front. It was the type of outfit you'd only expect to see a slave girl or a prostitute in.

All of the other human slaves were dressed in equally promiscuous outfits. Some others were lying by his throne, one was fanning his face with a large feathered fan, and one was dancing topless in front of him. A closer look revealed Maeralya was also present. The Lhamaean was sprawled over Faelan's lap with her legs hanging off the side of his throne's armrest.

She spoke with amusement at the slave girl dancing, **"You're such a sexy slut, Sorellia. You're Khaine's perfect little whore aren't you?"**

"Ah, there's my space marine! Come in, come in!" Faelan announced as he noticed Seiras and the two incubi enter.

The topless, dancing slave girl took her cue to get out of the way as the three of them walked directly towards the archon. As she stepped to the side, she got on her knees and sat next to Faelan's throne. It was only then that Seiras realized she was an Eldar.

Seiras stared at her briefly when he spotted the Howling Banshee mark on her forehead. This was definitely the exarch Sorellia.

Her eyes looked almost lifeless and she had an abundance of whorish makeup covering her face. Other than the loincloth bikini around her waist, she was completely naked. Her physique was every bit as impressive as one could picture a howling banshee's to be. She also had a glowing tan complexion that even Seiras couldn't help but admire. Many scars and bruises covered her body however, and the lipstick around her mouth was smeared.

The banshee's dead eyes were an orange gold and she had very long crimson hair. Seiras examined the noticeable choke marks around her neck that were evident even underneath her spiked collar. He couldn't help but feel sorry for the once proud warrior, _'I hate Eldar, but even I wouldn't wish that on a Howling Banshee…'_

Sorellia perked up slightly with confusion when she saw Seiras there. Part of him was wondering what was going through her mind as the exarch seemed surprised to see him there.

Faelan noticed Seiras staring at the banshee, "Ah, I see Sorellia caught your eye. Pretty isn't she?"

"She's a craftworlder," Seiras said slowly.

"Indeed…Sorellia is a howling banshee we captured a while back. Don't let her sad face fool you. She's an arrogant little firebrand. She could easily kill most of the warriors in my Kabal. Now look at her. She's not so proud anymore. She's only proud to be my pet, aren't you Sorellia?" Faelan chuckled.

"Yes master. I live to serve," the banshee answered almost lifelessly.

Seiras looked at Faelan curiously, "Why do you enslave your own kind? I've always found it odd that dark eldar and craftworlders hate each other. Aren't you all kin?"

"Aren't chaos space marines your kin?" Faelan countered.

The librarian nodded, "Fair point, I suppose. Schisms exist in every faction."

' _Even among the Tau apparently…'_ he thought immediately afterwards.

"I am most pleased to see Melisara was successful in reanimating you, Seiras. You look well, considering the abuse you took in the arena. When she came by to see me earlier, she had nothing but good things to say about you too. I find it interesting how much of a good impression you left on her. She's never one to exaggerate her admiration for others. I can see why Melisara likes you though. I myself have developed a strong admiration for your abilities," Faelan said with a disturbing friendliness.

"She's truly a genius, I'll give her that…" Seiras trailed off in sentence as he wasn't sure what else to say.

Faelan nodded, "Indeed. Anyways, this is my throne room as I'm sure you've learned by now. This lovely lady is my Lhamaean Maeralya. The others here are my incubi and Maeralya's personal slaves. This one at my feet is my personal slave, Meela."

' _These women must be her living doll collection and the red-haired one at his feet must be the null,'_ Seiras thought.

The redheaded Meela immediately focused her attention on Seiras. Her amber eyes were unnatural and extremely creepy. Seiras felt a bit uncomfortable from her staring, but that was hardly surprising since she was a blank.

The librarian shrugged, "Melisara told me you had plans for me…what do you want, archon?"

"Straight to the point I see. Very well, get up Maeralya," Faelan gestured for his concubine to get off his lap as he stood up.

Seiras took this time to examine Faelan a bit more closely now. He could definitely see the resemblance between him, Renfaeda, and even Nelfaera. They all a similar eye shape and jawline, but his eyes were practically the same as Renfaeda's.

Maeralya slumped back onto Faelan's throne and sprawled out comfortably on it as she watched the archon interact with Seiras.

"You fought well in the arena. I wasn't sure how well you'd handle yourself without your psychic powers and your power armour, but you surprised me. Also, I would like to thank you directly for killing Dracon Daeyal for me during our raid. I was getting sick of him, but I couldn't risk killing him and losing his family's support," Faelan stated casually as he paced in front of Seiras.

"You're welcome…I guess," the Blood Raven replied.

"I'm sure you've heard by now, but my name is Faelan. I'm the older twin brother of Renfaeda…your owner. She's the one who killed you the other day," he explained.

"I know," Seiras replied bluntly.

He chuckled as he examined Seiras for a moment, "Hmm…is that fresh blood I see stained over your skin? Did you kill anyone recently?"

"Four trueborn in the slave chamber I was in," Seiras answered.

The archon tilted his head, "You can identify the difference between trueborn and vatborn?"

"They wore trueborn armour, so it wasn't exactly difficult to discern," he said blankly.

"You fascinate me the more and more I see of you. I've encountered numerous space marines before, but never one that had any real understanding on how our technology works or how we think. That makes you valuable," Faelan grinned.

Seiras kept a blank look on his face as he responded, "If you say so…"

"Wait, he killed four trueborn kabalites in a slave chamber?" Maeralya piped up with curiosity.

Faelan rose a brow at the librarian, "Why did you kill them?"

"Because I could," Seiras answered bluntly.

The archon laughed at his response and nodded in approval, "Interesting answer, but I completely understand your logic. It's their own fault for putting themselves in the situation, anyway. You knew they meant nothing to me and that I wouldn't punish you for it…didn't you?"

"You're correct, Archon Faelan," Seiras replied.

"Melisara tells me that you have an improved agony circuit plugged into your limiter collar. Mind if I test it out?" he laughed.

Bracing himself for the inevitable pain, Seiras immediately collapsed to his knees as the agony collar overloaded his nervous system with indescribable pain.

Faelan released the trigger a few second later, "Hmm…that's a rather extreme response. You're not faking this pain, are you?"

A moment later he pressed the highest setting and held it down for almost thirty seconds. In that time, Seiras lost all clarity as he roared in agony and writhed on the ground.

"No, I suppose it's actually painful. That's good to know," Faelan noted as he let go of the trigger and let Seiras recover.

"Well it's good to have a failsafe for you in case you get any strange ideas. Regardless of that, I have an offer that I highly recommend you take," the blue haired archon said almost cheerfully as he paced in front of Seiras.

The librarian got back to his feet a moment later and looked at Faelan seriously, "What do you want?!"

"I find myself in a strange situation politically. You see, a rival Kabal has been encroaching on my territory recently, and its archon has convinced a few of our noble houses to switch allegiances and support her. This is unacceptable, wouldn't you agree?" Faelan said shaking his head.

"A female archon? Those exist?" Seiras deadpanned.

Maeralya laughed at his comment, "I like him already, Faelan!"

Faelan nodded his head, "Yes, they exist. Though they are rarer to see…not due to any lack in ability mind you, but for the simple fact that most trueborn females skilled enough to be an archon typically choose to become Hekatarii instead. That being said, a few of my Dracons are female. It's not entirely uncommon. Now a male succubus…that's something you'll see once every two thousand years."

Seiras found Faelan's upbeat and comical attitude a bit strange for an archon. He had an odd sense of humor and didn't appear to take himself as seriously as Seiras expected him to.

"Right…so how is your political situation relevant to me?" Seiras asked.

The archon grinned wickedly, "I want to send a message. Recently I've had my incubi make examples here and there, but that's starting to lose its fear factor if you catch my meaning. Sure, they're scary and they can kill everyone, but it just doesn't quite have the shock and awe it used to. It's what everyone's expecting. Now if I were to send a space marine to kill them…well that would turn a few heads, wouldn't it? I would like you to go and wipe out one of these noble families…the Khestri family."

"I don't follow…why does it matter who kills them?" Seiras said uncertainly.

"Whether anyone will admit it to your face or not, they know how dangerous you are, and they would be terrified to fight you. Imagine the fear they would experience seeing you back from the dead and working for me as you ravage their little spire. It's a nice big middle finger to rest of the Kabal and a perfect representation of my power in order to bring these doubters back in line. I want you to fuck their entire family to death. Fuck them harder than Slaanesh on nightbliss nectar and warpdust!" Faelan said excitedly with eager bloodlust.

Seiras looked at him confused, "You want me to mate with them to kill them?"

"It's a figure of speech, but if you want to capture a few and rape them, I won't object. Duke Khestri's daughter is rather pretty. He'd certainly grovel like a little bitch if you raped his daughter in front of him. She's a bit sheltered from what I understand," Faelan chuckled almost evilly.

The librarian looked at Faelan uncertainly as he changed the subject, "Am I doing this without a weapon?"

"Oh, of course not! I'll let you use your weapons and armour. As amusing as it sounds to imagine you slaughtering them half naked, you'll invoke much more fear wearing your gear and fighting for me," Faelan explained.

' _He's actually going to trust me with my gear? Well…I guess with this collar, I'm not much of a threat to anyone who can activate it,'_ Seiras pondered briefly.

 **"Archon Faelan! Urgent message for you!"** a nearby kabalite shouted as he bolted into the room.

 **"How urgent?!"** Faelan asked with annoyance.

The kabalite sounded audibly concerned, **"It's a private message from Lord Vect…"**

"I see…very well. Stay here for a little bit, Seiras. I have to attend to something. Maeralya, keep him entertained while I'm gone. Give him good incentives and what not," Faelan announced as he headed for the exit with all of his incubi.

"Come, Meela!" Faelan announced as he looked at his null. She immediately got up to follow Faelan out of the room.

Seiras stared at Meela briefly as she passed him. He tried to detect any more clues about what she was. Until now he hadn't noticed, but she had a red aquila tattooed to her forehead. It was hard to notice before due to her long red hair, but Seiras stared at it curiously, _'She's got an aquila tattooed to her forehead? Only a warrior would get something that extreme. She looks very fit…a bit larger than a regular human woman too. She's probably taller than Jessenta.'_

Once they all departed, the Blood Raven stood there awkwardly as he didn't know what to do now. He glanced at Maeralya and saw her fiddling with leg on the throne's seat. She was barefoot and dressed rather promiscuously, but that was hardly new to him at this point.

"So…how do you like Commorragh?" the Lhamaean asked him with a chilling friendliness.

"Worse than I imagined and better than I expected. It's been interesting at the very least," Seiras responded honestly.

The Lhamaean smiled, "You've had it much better than most here. Come, sit with me. Girls fetch me something for him to sit on."

Without even hesitating a number of Maeralya's living dolls shuffled to drag over some type of cushioned seat over for Seiras to sit on. It was rather large and looked like he wouldn't break it.

Reluctantly, Seiras sat down on it in front of Maeralya. She immediately got off the throne and sat next to him. To his disbelief, she slung her legs over his lap as she sat perpendicularly facing him. She lowered her head on the sofa, where a slave girl had a large pillow waiting for her. One girl began to fan her face as another gently brushed her hair.

The Lhamaean stretched out comfortably as she crossed her arms and stared at Seiras. She spoke with a relaxing tone, "So…I enjoyed your fight in the arena."

"Good to know," Seiras replied uncomfortably as he looked down at Maeralya's silky pale legs that were over his lap.

After a brief moment of silence he shook his head, "Why are you lying on top of me?"

"You don't mind do you? This is more comfortable than looking down at you from the throne," she chuckled.

The Astartes sighed, "I guess not..."

"Since we're in this position, do you mind giving me a foot massage? Be gentle though. I don't want those big hands crushing my delicate feet," Maeralya said smugly.

' _She's the archon's consort…why is she getting so close to me?!'_ the librarian thought horrified.

"I'm not doing that," Seiras replied defiantly as he remained still.

Maeralya sighed dramatically, "Ugh…please?! My muscles are really tense. They've been aching all day and my girls just can't do it right."

"What would the archon think about that?" Seiras asked uncertainly.

The Lhamaean eyed him with amusement, "Oh…you afraid he's going to get jealous if he sees you touching me. Faelan's not really like that. He likes sharing his girls for some odd reason. Take little Sorellia here for instance. I'm pretty sure every one of his incubi has had a go with her. He only gets mad if people touch Meela. She's his favorite."

 _'The archon has sex with a null? That's not a pleasant thought...'_ Seiras pondered for a brief moment.

Seiras glanced over at Sorellia who was still sitting on her knees at the base of the throne chair. She was staring intensely at them.

Maeralya looked over at her and chuckled, "Not that Sorellia minds though. Isn't that right, dear?"

"Yes, mistress. I love pleasing my masters," Sorellia spoke for the second time. While there was an audible sign of despair in her voice, she seemed completely serious when she said it.

"C'mon, Seiras…massage my feet!" Maeralya commanded.

The Blood Raven had shameful regret flooding his insides as he obeyed Maeralya's command. He began to gently massage her feet slowly and tightly. He tried not to think about what he was doing as he went about performing a pliability massage to her feet.

He would typically do this to his own muscles on occasion, and it was commonly done by chapter serfs when stretching a muscle to assist in healing.

"Ahhh, that feels so good," Maeralya practically moaned as she closed her eyes. This went on for almost a minute until Maeralya leaned up.

She let out a blissful sigh, "Get my calves too."

Against his better sense of judgment, Seiras moved his hands over and started massaging her calf muscles. Part of him was already aware of the inevitable horror that this was going to end up with her thighs next.

"You're definitely going to be my new masseuse. You've done this before haven't you? Is this how you get all the girls?" she said gleefully as she leaned back again.

"It's pliability muscle massaging. We use it to rehabilitate injuries and to relieve tendon pressure. There's no courtship or seduction involved in this," Seiras dismissed her comment.

Maeralya shook her head, "Oh really? Maybe you lack to stimuli we do then…Eldar love this kind of thing."

"I don't care." Seiras said stoically.

"Higher…get my thighs," she said as she kept her eyes closed.

Seiras stopped and looked at her, "That's too much."

"How so? There's nothing sexual about it. Didn't you say so yourself?" Maeralya asked.

' _Damn her…'_ he mentally fumed.

Slowly his hands moved up to above her knees where he started to massage her thighs. He kept his eyes solely focused on the task and ignored her reaction. He was careful to avoid touching her butt or inner thighs as he performed his task.

The Lhamaean began to moan softly for a moment before opening her eyes again, "I can definitely see why Renfaeda fucked you now."

The librarian immediately stopped as he jerked away from her, "What?!"

"Yeah I know about it. I keep tabs on her every movement." she said wickedly.

Seiras sent her a death glare as he felt himself becoming angry. Part of him wanted to murder her for mentioning it to him, but he wasn't really in a position to do that.

"I know it's a bit humiliating to get dominated, but you're actually pretty lucky. Renfaeda might be an obnoxious bitch, but she's a damn sexy bitch…I'll give her that," Maeralya chuckled.

The librarian wanted to kill Maeralya so bad for that comment. His reaction and the reveal of information seemed to pique the interest of the nearby slave girls. Seiras briefly witnessed their reactions. No doubt many of them were surprised that even a space marine could get raped in Commorragh.

"I'm done with this, and with you!" Seiras growled hatefully as he pushed her legs off of his lap.

Maeralya maintained her cool as she laughed, "Okay then…but we're definitely doing this again. You have magic hands."

Seiras took this moment to take in the slave girls' reactions fully. Many seemed a bit distraught and saddened to see one of the Emperor's holy angels in such a heretical and humiliating situation. Some were clearly attracted to him as they offered warm smiles and inviting eyes.

"Sorellia, give Seiras a lap dance so he'll stop being grouchy," Maeralya commanded the howling banshee who was now staring intensely at the librarian with a bewildered look.

Upon hearing her name, the banshee looked at the Lhamaean briefly before obeying her command. Seiras almost leapt in shock when he felt Maeralya's hands snake around his back. She was now standing behind him and began to caress his shoulders.

"Thanks for the massage, now I'll give you one too. I'm courteous like that…" Maeralya whispered in his ear as she leaned over the couch massaging his shoulders, back and neck.

As this was happening, Sorellia started to dance promiscuously in front of Seiras. She moved with the grace that only an Eldar could have as she got increasingly more physical. Before he knew what was happening, Seiras felt Sorellia straddle him. The banshee grinded herself against him as she put her bust in his face.

"You can continue in a moment" Maeralya dismissed the banshee.

It was just in time too, because Seiras felt himself getting aroused from it. He thanked his fortune that the banshee was finally off of him.

"What the hell is the point of all this?! Get off of me," Seiras pushed Maeralya's hands away.

A moment later he felt a sickening sensation as Sorellia pulled out his manhood and began to suck it. He immediately tried to move away, but then felt a dagger pressed against his throat.

"Now now…why don't you just sit down and relax. This blade is coated in a paralysis poison, so don't move if you know what's good for you. Sorellia's going to give you a blowjob." Maeralya said coolly.

' _FUCK!'_ Seiras thought furiously. He could do nothing now the howling banshee began to suck and lick with frenzied lust.

"You love that monkeigh cock don't you, Sorellia?" Maeralya said suggestively as she delighted in the banshee's situation.

To Seiras' disbelief, the banshee moaned in agreement as if to confirm that she did.

' _What the hell have they done to her?! Am I seriously getting molested willingly by a craftworlder now?! Ashera was right…she's gone crazy,'_ Seiras could barely believe the insanity.

"Maybe later I'll have you lick my feet…would you like that, Seiras?" Maeralya snickered as Seiras tried not to focus on the pleasure he was feeling.

' _Is she like the dark eldar version of Atia?! What's with people wanting me to touch them in weird ways?'_ Seiras thought disturbed.

"I hear he likes it when Eldar girls ride him. You want to test that out, Sorellia?" Maeralya suggested as she pressed the blade tighter against Seiras' throat.

As if on command, Sorellia immediately climbed on top of Seiras. He felt her slide down over his cock and moan loudly.

"That's right you little whore…you love it don't you? Give in to your lust and let him have you." Maeralya beamed.

Sorellia didn't even try to drag it out as she shamelessly pounded against him. Every bounce was accompanied by incoherent moaning and loud shrieks.

Lacking the same willfulness to resist as he did against Renfaeda, Seiras saw no point in allowing this to drag out and simply accepted it. He didn't quite reach his climax before he felt Sorellia spasming on top of him.

" **I can't. I'm cumming! It's too much! UGHHH!"** Sorellia moaned in her own language as she orgasmed. She rode it out for a while, but finally stopped as she leaned into Seiras trembling.

"You couldn't even make him cum, Sorellia…geez, I thought you were good at this," Maeralya laughed as she released the blade on Seiras' throat.

Not able to finish, Seiras felt a painful feeling in his crotch. Sorellia looked at him uncertainly as she finally recovered from her orgasm.

Seiras immediately pushed the banshee off of him as he stood up.

Maeralya shook her head, "Rail that bitch, Seiras…she couldn't even make you cum."

Looking down at Sorellia for a moment, Seiras sighed, "I'm not doing that."

"What have you got to lose at this point? You've already had sex with her. Might as well blow your load too," Maeralya laughed.

The librarian cursed his situation as he picked Sorellia up off the ground. The banshee looked a bit alarmed as Seiras grabbed the back of her red hair and bent her over the sofa.

"Getting her from behind huh? That's hot," Maeralya said with a sultry voice.

Sorellia began to moan almost painfully as the Astartes continued to penetrate her repeatedly. This position felt completely different and way more stimulating as Seiras spread her legs and thrusted nonstop. He tried not to think about the act as he let his mind go someplace else.

 _'One day, I'll be out of here…with Ferrus Manus alive again. I'll redeem my chapter in the eyes of the Inquisition. Gabriel, Jonah, all of the others…they'll be proud to call me their brother,'_ Seiras focused on his future plans. It was the only thing that kept his mind away from the shameful depravity that his body was partaking in.

" **By Isha! ARGHH! I can't take it! It's so good! AHH!"** Sorellia didn't take long to orgasm again as Seiras continued.

He finally reached his own climax and without thinking blew a load into her. Sorellia practically squealed as the sticky slapping sound got louder and louder. Once it was finally over, Seiras pulled out of her. The banshee collapsed on the sofa and shuddered for a moment as she recovered.

Maeralya reached down and felt the hot cum in the banshee's nether regions. She brought it to her mouth and started to lick it as if it were a pastry to be tasted.

" **Hmm, a bit salty, but nice and warm. Try some Sorellia. That's space marine cum. Aren't you a lucky whore?"** Maeralya goaded as she placed her fingers in the banshee's mouth.

Seiras let out a defeated sigh as he tried not to reflect on what he just did. At this point, he was starting to lose guilt over it because it had already happened too many times. The librarian focused on his future plans and let that stand as his lighthouse in the dark ocean he was in emotionally.

"How do you feel now, Seiras? Better?" Maeralya asked.

"Yeah…" he said distantly as he immediately put his underwear loincloth back on.

"Good, because there's plenty more where that came from. Ahaha…get it? Came from?" Maeralya chuckled at her own sexual joke.

He looked at her confused, "What?"

"Any of you girls want to have sex with Seiras too?" Maeralya asked her nearby slaves.

A number of them eagerly nodded and moved in closer. The female slaves all lined up in a row in front of Maeralya and Seiras. The Lhamaean sprawled across the sofa and watched with interest as Seiras stood there uncertainly. There were sixteen in total, and all of them were aesthetically pleasing and gorgeous.

"Are you serious? I just had sex with that craftworlder!" Seiras protested.

The Lhamaean scoffed, "Yeah and? That was an appetizer. I'll let you pick any of my beautiful monkeigh girls. They're the prettiest ones I could find…some cost me a fortune. Which one do you think is the sexiest?"

"I…don't-"

"You don't think any of them are?! Don't hurt their feelings now, Seiras. These poor girls have never seen a space marine before. I'm sure your impression of them means a lot," Maeralya interrupted him.

"That's not what I meant. I refuse to objectify them like objects. They're all pretty, and that's the only opinion I have on any of them. I'm not going to mate with them for your amusement," Seiras stated.

Maeralaya rolled her eyes, "It's more of a reward for them. Although…seeing you turn away such beautiful monkeigh girls makes me think you prefer Eldar females…am I right? Maybe you'd rather mate with me?"

"You're wrong," Seiras practically growled at her.

"Then pick one…you won't find prettier monkeigh girls anywhere else in Commorragh." Maeralya shot back.

The librarian sighed as he looked over the women briefly. All of them looked noticeably nervous and a bit intimidated by him. A few appeared bolder than others as they maintained eye contact. The one in the middle right had cropped brown hair with a large white streak running through it. What was distinguishable about her was the tattoo on her cheek. Seiras could barely believe his eyes as he looked at it. The tattoo was of a fleur de lis…the iconic symbol of the Sororitas.

' _She's a sister of battle…and she just watched me have sex with a craftworlder. Emperor help me.'_ Seiras thought incredulously as he stared at her.

"Looks like you found your favorite," Maeralya said with a smug giggle.

The brown haired sororita looked notably shy and embarrassed as she avoided eye contact with Seiras.

"That one's Sylea…she's a beauty, isn't she?" Maeralaya announced.

"Where did you get her?" Seiras asked the dark eldar female.

"You interested in her? I'll assign her as your attendant then. She's yours to command…just don't damage her," Maeralya smiled.

The librarian shook his head disgusted, "I don't want her for that. I just wanted to know where you got her!"

"Some shrine world…I don't know. I bought her from Dracon Daeyal. I'd tell you to ask him, but you killed him in the last raid. I believe he told me she was a healer or something. Does that satisfy your curiosity?" the Lhamaean scoffed.

' _A healer? She's a sister though…wait she must be a Hospitaller,'_ Seiras finally realized.

The brown-haired sororita looked at Seiras uncertainly as she spoke up, "If it would please you my lord, I'll proudly be your attendant. I'm am yours to command."

"Ah, so cute, isn't she? Still, what made you choose her though?" Maeralya asked.

' _They must not know she's a sister of battle. I should keep that to myself,'_ Seiras thought rationally.

"I picked one…are we done with this nonsense yet?" Seiras changed the subject.

"You honour me my lord. I hope I can please you the same way the Eldar can," Sylea spoke softly as she bowed her head in subservience.

' _Seeing a sister like this is even more disturbing than seeing Sorellia's state of mind. I'm thankful Jessenta or Selana didn't get captured. I can't imagine what foul things these evil xenos would be doing to them if they did,'_ Seiras thought as he felt a wave of concern for his lost allies on Corun.

Thankfully, before anything else could happen, Seiras heard someone enter the room. Faelan came walking in with an annoyed look on his face. He and his incubi all stood by the door as well as his null.

" **Faelan, you're back? What's wrong?"** Maeralya asked curiously.

He shook his head, **"Nothing serious…Lord Vect and I just had conversation about The Kabal of the Poisoned Tongue."**

" **Really? Did he ask for your help in fighting them?"** Maeralya asked inquisitively.

" **No, but I was interested to learn that the Kabal of the Bladed Sun has allied with the Kabal of the Poisoned Tongue. Vect was most displeased that Archon Velatha has aligned with Lady Malys,"** Faelan sighed.

Glancing at Seiras now, the archon addressed him, "You ready to go kill some people for me, Seiras?"

"Yes archon," the librarian jumped at the chance to get away from Maeralya and the slave girls.

"Good. Let's go get you equipped immediately," Faelan stated as he began to take his leave. Seiras followed behind him as well as the entire incubi host.

 **Melisara's Lab**

After a long and mostly silent walk, Seiras arrived with Faelan at Melisara's lab. The haemonculus peered from behind one of her lab's vaults as they entered and immediately levitated over towards them.

" **How may I be of assistance, Faelan?"** she asked.

" **Get him his armour and weapons equipped…add a banner for me too,"** he ordered.

Melisara nodded, **"Of course. Where are you sending him?"**

 **"To wipe out the Khestri family's spire,"** he responded.

Turning towards Seiras now, the archon spoke seriously, "I have an important matter to attend to that requires my full attention, but I have no doubts in your ability to make examples of these dissenters to my rule. I'm sending you with two of my Incubi…Tullarias and Mairan. They don't talk much, but obey their every command as if it were my own. Make an example of the Khestri family. Butcher them hatred. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, archon," the librarian nodded.

"Good…I'll leave you to it," he replied.

 **"Here, Tullarias, take one of these trigger switches in case you need to nullify Seiras,"** the archon tried to hand one of the devices to an incubus.

He didn't accept it as he responded immediately, **"Mairan and I don't need that..."**

 **"Suit yourself,"** Faelan shrugged before leaving with 10 of his incubi.

The remaining two were the same ones that escorted Seiras from before. Their stoic reactions make it impossible to tell what they thought of the situation, but Seiras honestly didn't care. He did however know their names now. The larger one was Tullarias and the smaller one was Mairan.

Melisara chuckled at Seiras after Faelan left, "He only gets like that when Vect contacts him. Judging by his demeanor, I wouldn't be surprised if the Kabal ends up in full scale war soon."

"Full scale war? Who are they at war with exactly?" Seiras asked.

The haemonculus thought for a moment, "Some lunatic named Velatha. She's the newest archon of the Bladed Sun Kabal."

"How is she crazier than the rest of the dark eldar here?" Seiras asked.

"Well for starters, she's renounced Vect. That's a pretty stupid thing to do in Commorragh. Velatha is also well known for having the most incubi of any minor archon. Hell she's got an entire shrine completely dedicated to her. I guess that's not surprising since she worships Khaine. And when I say worship, I mean she likes to bathe in cauldrons of blood and what not," Melisara mused.

"I thought only Incubi worshipped Khaine here?" Seiras said confused.

Mairan and Tullarias both turned their heads towards him as they were no doubt curious about Seiras' knowledge on the matter.

"Yeah, well I guess that explains why she's got an entire Incubi shrine under her command," Melisara chuckled.

Melisara briefly glanced at the two incubi that were no doubt confused by Seiras' friendly interaction with her.

"Anyways, I'll have my wracks bring over your armour now. I wasn't sure how effective your force weapons would be without your psychic powers, so I went ahead and upgraded them to double as power weapons too. I also made you some more bolter rounds," she beamed.

 _'She upgraded my weapons?! If there's one Dark Eldar that's trying to make me like them, it's definitely her. Who'd have thought a haemonculus would be my greatest ally in this place?'_ Seiras thought incredulously as wracks showed up to equip him.

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Alright guys, that's it for this chapter. This one was about average length for me...14 k words. Anyways, a lot of stuff went down this chapter. Seiras is gathering some allies to help his eventual escape. Things are starting to get more serious now, but how will upcoming events change his plans? He originally only thought to save himself, but will these new allegiances change his mind on saving more people?

We got some more insight into Faelan and Maeralya this chapter. They seem somewhat friendly unlike the wyches. How will this affect Seiras' perceptions? Also, I snuck another lemon in at the end of this chapter. There's a decent amount of smut in this story now, but don't be distraught if you're getting tired of it. Some big action is coming up in the next few chapters. Stay tuned if you're eager to find out what happens next. As always, thanks for reading.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18: The Purge**

After a few short minutes of getting equipped by the various wracks in Melisara's lab, Seiras was now adorned once more in his power armour with a fully reloaded storm bolter. It deeply concerned him how knowledgeable the Dark Eldar were on the task as one wrack even began to clip extra ammunition magazines magnetically to his armour.

As they finished doing this, Melisara giggled like a gleeful psychopath, "Good, good! Oh and don't forget to put the Kabal banner on his armour too. Over the power pack is where they usually put their own banners."

From behind, Seiras felt one of them attach a flag banner to the top of his power pack sticking upwards. Seeing him trying to look at it, Melisara held up a makeshift mirror to show him his reflection, "That's a banner of the Kabal of the Twilight Shadow. Faelan wanted you to wear it."

The banner was made out of flayed skin from what he could see. He paid it little mind as he examined his own face for a moment. He found it unusual that his facial scars were now gone. _'Melisara mentioned that she removed them…I wonder why?'_

"I understand your intention…otherwise people might get the wrong idea about what I'm doing," he noted.

"True enough," Melisara agreed with a nod.

She was quick to notice his confused face as the Astartes stared at her briefly. He shook his head with uncertainty, "Melisara, why did you heal my facial scars?"

"Oh those? I'm a perfectionist…I always like to finish the job and make things better than they were before. Some might even call me obsessively compulsive. Although, I technically didn't repair those scars manually. It was a side-effect of your…restoration." She smiled proudly.

' _Why do I get the feeling there's more to it than that? That was an extremely roundabout way of saying that she did it for the sake of compulsion.'_ he thought concerned.

"Alright, with all your armour and your bolter equipped, here are your new and improved force weapons. Just so you know, I had to get them from Aelendriel's chambers. She had them in her trophy collection…as well as other interesting items. I decided to take them as payment for reviving her. She's lucky that's all she owes me for it," Melisara replied with a sinister grin.

' _I was wondering about when she got my wargear. I do remember Aelendriel talking about looting it. Wait…does that mean Melisara found the webway remote too?! I should ask her, but I can't say anything with these two incubi still here,'_ Seiras thought to himself for a moment.

The Blood Raven shrugged, "I appreciate it, Melisara."

"It was no problem, Seiras. I do hope your little mission goes well. If you have time after you get back, I'll give you the full tour of my lab. I have something particularly fascinating to show you," Melisara responded enthusiastically.

Though they were in his peripheral vision, Seiras could see the two incubi turn their heads towards each other as if trying to confirm that Melisara and Seiras were being more than a little friendly. It was known to them that she liked Seiras, but there was no doubt they were confused by the unnecessary civility. Melisara was extremely infamous and terrifying to everyone in this part of Commorragh and Seiras was an alien hating superhuman. Nothing about their polite and respectful interaction seemed normal to the incubi.

The haemonculus proceeded to hand Seiras his sword and halberd a moment later. He immediately strapped the sword to his armour as he gripped the nemesis halberd with one hand.

"That's a Grey Knight weapon, right? Where did you get a Nemesis Force Halberd?" Melisara asked him as she examined the polearm.

"You know about Nemesis force weapons and the Grey Knights?" he asked surprised.

Melisara rose a brow at him before cackling darkly, "Is that really surprising? I probably know more about your Imperium than you do, Seiras. Those weapons are very valuable, and I know they don't give them to anyone except the Grey Knights. I suppose you stole that one, didn't you?"

"I took it from a dead Grey Knight. Those weapons are useful for fighting daemons and I wasn't about to let one go to waste. It's previous owner was killed by Fulgrim during our raid onto his flagship," he answered a moment later.

Melisara nodded approvingly, "Well that's most fortunate for you then. I also repaired your armour as well. Before you ask how, I got the knowledge from some mechanicus slaves a few millennia back. They weren't very willing to part with the information, so I extracted it from their brains."

"I see," he responded blankly.

"I'm curious about something, Seiras. Do you see your Emperor as a god?" Melisara asked the librarian as she ignored the impatient staring of the two incubi further away.

Her question seemed unusual, but Seiras decided to answer it anyways, "I used to when I was an ignorant child. Things changed after I became a space marine and learned that we aren't actually angels. These days I see him as the one true paragon of humanity. His light is everything we should honour and strive to emulate."

"It is good that you were able to cast aside the pretty lies of delusion and to accept cold hard logic for what it is. Such harsh truths are rarely embraced by anyone anymore. Your bloated Imperium lives in denial worshipping the Emperor as a god. The deranged fanatics of Chaos wholeheartedly embrace their own false deities. Even the Asuryani craftworlders delude themselves into believing the gods will save them from Slaanesh. Funny isn't it? Did Asuryan or Morai-Heg save me from my soul decay? Did Khaine, Ynnead, Vaul, or Isha? No…it was all me. It was all through science and ingenuity. Everyone should take responsibility for their own fates and set the examples for their kin," Melisara ranted approvingly.

A temporary silence filled the room as Seiras glanced over at Tullarias and Mairan. Even despite his inability to see their faces, he could almost sense that they were glaring at Melisara.

To end the awkward silence, he immediately asked a question, "Did you ever believe in any of the Eldar Gods, Melisara? I mean…before the Fall?"

"A curious but random question…why do you ask?" she countered.

"I just wanted to know if you had any actual information on what they are. They're not chaos gods, but they seem to be warp entities, nonetheless. Have they always existed? How does your kind even have these so-called gods?" Seiras questioned the haemonculus.

Melisara shifted her gaze to the two stoically encroaching incubi before answering, "I'm old, but I'm not _THAT_ old, Seiras. The gods were around for millions of years…well until Slaanesh ate most of them. Still, I do possess some vague knowledge on the matter. Back when the warp was mostly free of Chaos, the Eldar Empire could create anything within it. I have no idea how this was done, but apparently our kind could live eternally in the warp and be reborn into the materium whenever they wanted. We had full mastery over it and could bend it to our will. We literally created our own pantheon. The Eldar Gods are not real gods…they're creations of ours that were used to fight the Necrons and protect us in the warp. The Chaos Gods are the same way…though they've been twisted over the eons. Most of them were born from the War in Heaven, and your species' eventual rise to power fueled their negative aspects. This gave them form and substance as what you call daemons. Your species is most responsible for turning Nurgle and Khorne into what they are today. Our kind was responsible for creating Slaanesh…a manifestation of our beautiful sin and debauchery. While these entities exist in imagination and in the warp…they're not technically real, and they're not gods. Religion is rather stupid and annoying in my opinion. It breeds ignorant zealots and it always causes technological and cultural stagnation. Only a primitive minded fool would take solace in surrendering his or her will to something that isn't based in logic. Our will is what created the so-called gods to begin with. That would make us greater than them would it not?"

At this point, Seiras could almost feel the hatred radiating off the two incubi from Melisara's explanation.

" **Your insults against Khaine will be remembered, haemonculus,"** Tullarias finally spoke with seething calm malice.

She seemed to delight in their disapproval as she continued speaking, "That's another thing I like about you space marines…you don't believe your Emperor is a god. Well most of you anyways. Sadly, the rest of your race doesn't see things the same way. The fact that they worship him is rather unfortunate in my opinion. I personally hate the Ecclesiarchy in your Imperium. They usually get the most gruesome fates in my lab. They're such blind zealots. Even the Master of Mankind knew that gods aren't real, and they never will be. He would find their worship of him disgusting and pathetic. The Mechanicus is almost as bad, but at least some of them are innovative and free-thinking."

"That's an interesting perspective…" Seiras trailed off as he didn't know what to say in response.

Melisara beamed, "I'm glad you think so…it's the same belief your Emperor held. Interestingly enough, Fabius Bile also shares in this belief even though he's a chaos space marine. It's rare for me to find like-minded individuals in today's galaxy. While most denizens of Commorragh don't acknowledge the 'gods', they're pathetically stagnant and single-minded as well. I pity them all. While you may be human, you possess the spark of ingenuity…the free will to think for yourself. That is what I like about you the most, Seiras."

" **We don't time for this, Melisara!"** Tullarias spoke again with contempt in his voice.

" **You will wait until I'm finished, or I'll personally harvest your entire shrine!"** Melisara shot back with a terrifyingly voice. It was dark, deep, and almost echoic.

Seiras was amazed that the two incubi didn't flinch from her terrifying rebuttal as he himself almost did. He looked between them all a bit concerned, _'I've never seen her get angry before. That's not a pleasant sight. I wonder if she's trying to provoke these incubi? What's the point in talking to me about this in front of them? Melisara must be planning something.'_

With his full armour on, Seiras proceeded to put his helmet on personally. He didn't bother attaching his psychic hood's psy cables, but Melisara quickly did it for him anyways. He tilted his head in confusion as she finished the adjustment.

A moment later she pressed the trigger switch to his agony collar on her wrist. The collar's shock flooded his nervous system, and he could feel it focusing heavily over the psy cables now causing him to growl in pain.

Melisara didn't hold the switch for long before releasing it. She chuckled at his reaction, "Just so you know…the collar hurts more if you're in power armour. Your psychic hood will echo and circulate the pain through your central nervous system. It will build up in your brain in an endless loop of pressure. If one holds the switch down for too long your brain will start to hemorrhage and eventually it'll explode through the foramen magnum flushing out of your skull."

"I get it already! I won't do anything stupid or betray the Kabal," Seiras sighed at the explanation.

"Oh, I have all the faith in the galaxy that you'll be perfectly behaved. I doubt anyone will actually use it on you if you prove yourself useful and loyal," the haemonculus noted.

Nodding at her, the librarian then turned to the two incubi and addressed them, "Lead the way. Let's go wipe out this spire."

"When you're done with fighting, bring him back here and I'll put his gear back into storage," Melisara told the incubi as they turned to leave immediately without acknowledging her or Seiras.

' _Why did she provoke them like that? What did she have to gain by insulting their religion? Melisara is a real mystery.'_ Seiras thought with concern.

The Astartes followed behind the two black-clad incubi as they silently and gracefully departed. The walk was similar to the first time he was escorted by this particular duo. Neither incubus spoke and they moved with purpose as they led Seiras to the Kabal's foundry.

He looked around curiously as he recognized some of the hallways, chambers, and open-roof plazas along the way. He had seen these places before from the overseer's memories. Seeing the foundry within range, he also began to spot numerous scourges flying around in the sky or perched atop spires.

They all seemed greatly interested and a bit confused at the space marine and incubi walking together towards the foundry. A number of them circled overhead like vultures as they broke into conversations and outbursts about the arrivals.

As they reached the entrance to the foundry, they noticed a number of kabalites coming and going as well as raiders and other vehicles landing in the plaza nearby. Everyone's heads turned as they stared in bewilderment at the unusual trio. A moment later, a group of scourges landed in front of them.

" **Where are you going with this monkeigh?! Why's he armoured and armed?!"** the front scourge demanded. He was undoubtedly the leader.

" **Archon Faelan sent him with us for a purge. I suggest you remove yourself from our sight now, solarite! If you don't, I'll gladly decorate the spires with your corpses!"** Tullarias spoke hatefully to the winged drukhari.

The various scourges all flinched noticeably from Tullarias' deep and terrifying voice. He sounded like he was still angry from earlier. The solarite who was undoubtedly the squad leader of this pack shook his head, **"You expect me to believe the archon is letting a space marine walk around like that?! Where did you even get one?!"**

" **He's the same one from the arena battle that killed Mokaela, Aelendriel, and Nelfaera. Melisara just resurrected him recently,"** Tullarias said darkly.

The scourges looked shocked by the information as several raised splinter rifles and dark lances at them. The solarite shook his head, **"Put those down, you idiots! Are you trying to get us killed?! You may proceed into the foundry, but if that monkeigh does anything stupid we're killing him!"**

" **You can certainly try. Get in my way again and I'll sacrifice all of you to Khaine,"** Tullarias responded darkly as he raised his klaive up to the solarite causing the winged warrior to freeze fearfully.

The incubi said nothing else as they both walked past the scourges with Seiras following behind. The winged dark eldar scourges all had varying expressions on his appearance and presence there.

" **Why's the archon sending a space marine with his incubi? Better yet…where?"** one asked.

Another scoffed at the situation, **"Did they actually resurrect him? I could have sworn I watched Lady Renfaeda kill that monkeigh in the arena."**

" **Maybe they should give him a skyboard to fly around on,"** a third one chuckled.

Seiras ignored the remaining conversations as he progressed into the foundry hanger port with the two incubi. They wasted no time going for a custom ravager that was parked at the far end of the foundry.

As they approached it, Seiras couldn't help but wonder how effective a ravager would be with only 3 people on it. Getting onto the hover platform, Seiras looked around uncertainly as he saw Tullarias immediately approach the pilot's seat. The larger incubus sat down and turned the vehicle on as it levitated off the ground. Glancing at Mairan now, Seiras half expected the other incubus to tell him what to do.

As if on cue, the other incubus spoke for the first time in gothic, "Remain at the right dark lance cannon and be prepared to use it. I know you know how to. I'll operate the front one."

"Is there anything else I should know about the mission? What do you need me to do during this purge?" Seiras asked the two incubi.

Mairan looked over at Tullarias and stared for a moment. The larger incubus took the hint as he addressed Seiras in gothic, "We're purging the Khestri family. All of them and their vassals are to be executed. Mairan and I are not here to supervise you, so don't be foolish and remain within appropriate range of us. Kill every kabalite and noble you see…don't murder the slaves though. That would be a waste. Also, make sure to preserve the heads of the actual Khestri family themselves. They wear distinguishable feathered and spiked headdresses, so even a monkeigh like you will be able to tell. We shouldn't see them until we reach the top. Their heads are to be placed in areas of high traffic at the palace spire in order to display a message to rest of the Kabal. Don't test your luck in trying to escape either. We're not as nice as Archon Faelan and we're not easy to kill."

"I understand," Seiras nodded.

Without another word, Tullarias piloted the vehicle out of the foundry dock and accelerated at high speed. Flying on the ravager for the better part of an hour, Seiras took in the scenery of Commorragh with more detail now. He was finally starting to gain a better understanding of its bizarre architecture and twisted planes. He made note of a few areas where he saw massive ships coming and going and spent the better part of this time wondering how the Dark Eldar knew where to go.

To his fascination, he noticed the distant star on the horizon was moving. He focused his eyes on it and couldn't help but wonder again how it was possible. He doubted the incubi would tell him anything about it, but decided to ask them anyways, "How do you have a star in the webway?"

"There's several in Commorragh. They're used to illuminate the darkness in the main hub areas of the city, but their light barely goes below the spires. The most powerful noble families used to own them until Supreme Overlord Vect seized power here. They are moved by ancient stellar engines. Some even have planets and moons that they pull with them in here. The stellar engines that move them are able to nullify the gravity on these solar bodies as well. Only a select few within Commorragh know how they work. They existed before the Fall and were used widely by the Old Empire," Tullarias explained.

Seiras could barely believe that the incubus answered his question, _'I thought Faelan said they didn't talk much? He answered my question thoroughly without any snide nonsense too…that's strange.'_

"I honestly didn't expect you to answer," Seiras said disbelievingly.

Tullarias scoffed at him, "I see no reason to withhold that information from you. Not to mention, you've earned some measure of my respect. Killing two succubi and a syren without armour or your own weapons is certainly no trivial feat. Inferior species or not, you're a real warrior. While I detest talking to most, I am not so petty as to ignore another warrior,"

"You're saying you approve of my successful kills in the arena?" he gawked at the Incubus disbelievingly.

"Yes," Tullarias replied.

The librarian shook his head, "Why though? You don't care that I killed those wyches?"

Before Tullarias could answer, Mairan did first, "That's actually why we approve. You won three unfair fights back to back. I would have loved to murder Nelfaera or Aelendriel myself…though watching them get defeated by a monkeigh was satisfying and extremely humiliating for them. If I were you, I would have completely vaporized the bodies so the haemonculus couldn't reanimate them. It's a shame they'll be alive again, but at least they'll suffer humiliation for it."

Seiras glanced at Mairan confused, "You hate the wyches?"

"Obviously…" the incubus said condescendingly in response.

"We all dislike them for one reason or another, but Mairan hates them the most," Tullarias interjected.

The librarian stared at the smaller incubus for a moment before responding, "Why? Do you have some personal vendetta against them?"

"Mind your own business and don't ask me personal questions. I am not interested in speaking with a monkeigh about this or anything in general," Mairan said dismissively.

"Forget I asked then. I was just curious," Seiras replied as he looked back onto the horizon.

A brief silence passed before Tullarias spoke again, "I'll tell you why I hate them. Wyches are cowards. They know nothing of honour and they celebrate false glory. They practically made you fight naked without any arms or armour while they had full battle gear. There's no glory to be had in beating down a handicapped opponent. They aren't real warriors…they're just annoying trueborn celebrities that overestimate their own importance in battle. I get no satisfaction in watching them slaughter slaves. I only enjoy the arenas when they slaughter each other."

"You incubi believe in honour? That seems strange considering you're Drukhari. I thought your entire society was built on deception." Seiras said surprised.

"It isn't honour in the way your imperium would understand it. We simply believe that a warrior should be properly tested against his enemy at their best. What glory or achievement is there in beating down weak slaves? The weak should be tortured, punished, and burned…but we should not celebrate our own superiority for performing such meticulous chores. It is no different than an adult boasting about beating a petulant child in a fight. It is a hollow and worthless accomplishment. A warrior is not truly a warrior unless he can defeat another warrior in battle," Tullarias explained in detail.

"So it's a philosophical difference? Is that why Mairan hates them too?" Seiras asked Tullarias directly.

The larger incubus sighed, "It's not my place to speak for Mairan. If she doesn't want to tell you, then I won't either."

"She? Mairan's female?" Seiras asked disbelievingly.

Turning her helmeted head in his direction, Mairan let out a hissing sigh, "Yes…"

"A female Incubus? I wasn't aware there were female Incubi. Why aren't you a wych or a kabalite? I thought incubi were exclusively male." Seiras wondered.

"There is no restriction between the sexes for our kind. If one has the ability and the proper pedigree, they can be whatever they want. As Archon Faelan told you earlier, even Male Succubi have arisen before. Nevertheless, beastmasters are typically male, high ranking wyches are almost always female, and Lhamaeyans are the only true unisex group…though they're very rare highborn courtesans," Tullarias commented factually.

"The reason I'm not a wych is because they are diva gladiators and celebrities. I'm not considered beautiful by my own kind, and I am not trueborn. This prevented my ability to join a wych cult. In my past I attempted to join and was rejected. I also don't like politics, and I didn't have any interest in being a no name kabalite. That severely limited my options in joining a Kabal too. I could have become a hellion or a reaver but I chose not to pursue those paths. The Incubi Shrine was the best remaining option for one such as me. They take in all who are brave enough, and every aspirant no matter who they are must earn their place or die trying. Pedigree means nothing to Khaine…only personal might! Obviously, I succeeded in becoming an incubus and I proved myself worthy. I was born again as a warrior of Khaine and I proudly wear the brand and the armour. That is why I am an incubus, monkeigh!" Mairan explained with venomous hatred.

' _So much for them not talking much…'_ Seiras noted mentally.

Looking closely at Mairan's armour, he noticed it wasn't sexualized at all. One could easily mistake her for being male due to its slender, but neutral shape. However, now that he knew Mairan was female, he could distinctly identify her voice was higher pitched than most male Eldar.

Seiras looked confused, "So you're unattractive for an eldar then?"

"If one takes the opinions of wyches and trueborn ladies as evidence then yes. Though I don't really care enough to give it a second thought," the incubus replied.

"What do they say exactly?" Seiras questioned.

The incubus responded with annoyance, "Nothing that concerns you. Why do you keep asking us questions anyways?! We're not here to entertain you!"

Looking away and back into the distance, Seiras decided to drop the matter. He didn't want to distress the incubus anymore than he already had.

" **The space marine seems unusually curious about us. That's strange considering what I know about them. I don't sense any agitation or stress from him either. His demeanor suggests that he's actually interested in what we're saying. What do you make of that, Mairan?"** Tullarias asked the other incubus

She glanced back at him and sighed, **"I don't know or care…the sooner we get this purge over with, the sooner we can be rid of his company!"**

" **We're stuck with him for a while, so we might as well learn about him while he's with us. This monkeigh is different from any that I've seen. Archon Faelan was correct in that he is uniquely knowledgeable on our kind. It's also not normal that a cur like Melisara likes him…aren't you even slightly curious as to why? It seems suspicious to me."** Tullarias responded.

" **So what? You want us to keep talking to him then? You're the reason he won't shut up now."** she said with disgust.

" **We might as well pass the time. Not to mention, he deserves some respect for killing the succubi the way he did. Or are you suggesting we ignore the warrior code?"** Tullarias pointed out.

Mairan huffed at his comment before glancing at Seiras again. She addressed him in gothic, "Do you seriously want to know?"

Pretending not to hear her for a moment, Seiras glanced over after a brief delay, "Are you saying you're going to tell me?"

"The wyches who have seen my face before have ridiculed my appearance. Renfaeda even calls me 'Scarface' if that gives you any idea about their hollow opinions. The insults don't bother me, but their brazen disrespect does," Mairan said venomously.

"You should show him, Mairan," Tullarias suggested.

Sighing heavily, the smaller incubus reached for her helmet. Seiras could barely believe the situation as she actually removed it. The Incubus' hair flowed freely as the fearsome helmet came off. Mairan's hair was a two-tone mixture of silver and black. Most of it was pulled into a long hightail, but the rest flowed messily around her shoulders. She had hateful turquoise within black eyes and her skin was ghostly pale. Noticing the shape of her helmet, it now made perfect sense to him why Eldar helmets were shaped that way. It was so they could fit their hightail hair into it.

As he examined her face, he saw that literally half of it was covered in brutal looking battle scars. Seiras took a closer look at them as he stared for a moment. The entire left side of Mairan's face was scarred with massive claw wounds. They went from middle of her face all the way over the left side of her head. She also had a glowing tattoo similar to aspect warrior runes on her forehead. Only it was of Khaine's rune and not any particular path. Despite her scars, the right side of her face was relatively untouched except for a light scar on her cheek. The right side had a respectable aesthetic appeal that one could only expect from an Eldar, but it lacked the feminine allure that most of the wyches had. She was fortunate enough that the scars on the entire left side of her head didn't slash out an eye at all. Her face was somewhat gaunt and androgynous, but her eyes were very femininely shaped. She actually might have been attractive if she ever cared to fix herself.

' _She's not ugly for an Eldar, but she doesn't look very feminine minus the eyes. I guess as an incubus she probably doesn't care about her appearance or wear makeup,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he stared briefly.

Seiras didn't react in any particular way as he acknowledged her appearance, "Nice scars. Where did you get them?"

"When I was a slave in lower Commorragh, I had to kill a mandrake with my bare hands. This is the result of my survival. The scars never went away despite my attempts to remove them. I could never afford the services of a haemonculus either. By the time I could, such things no longer mattered as I was an incubus and had no need to be pretty. The scars mark my past and show my strength. Superficial beauty means nothing to real warriors, but I rarely ever remove my helmet in the presence of wyches or arrogant nobility. Some cowards can't handle the sight of a true warrior," Mairan explained after noticing Seiras' examination.

' _Why did she remove her helmet for me then? She seems to hate me,'_ Seiras thought curiously.

"You're better off as an incubus, I'd say. We Astartes don't care about scars either," he replied approvingly.

"Looking at the Hekatarii now, I don't see much interest in being one of those half-naked whores dancing around the battlefield with no armour like fools. Not one of them in their cult or this kabal are my equal in combat. They are nothing in the eyes of Khaine and I wish death upon them all. I'm only humoring this conversation with you because you murdered three of those worthless harlots for me. The code demands that I acknowledge you for that. Don't mistake my intentions for friendliness in showing you my face. I don't like you, and I would kill you without a second thought if I had to," Mairan said hatefully.

A brief silence passed as neither one really knew what to say afterward.

"You think you could beat Renfaeda in a fight?" Seiras asked her curiously.

Mairan nodded, "With preparation I could. I know her weaknesses. She also lacks honour and disrespects Khaine. Renfaeda doesn't deserve an honourable death. I would slaughter her in cold blood if the opportunity was given to me. I long for the day she tries to usurp Faelan. I'll carve her face off and wear it right after I hack her limbs apart and flay her skin. If I had a dick, I'd probably rape her to death while wearing her face as well."

' _Just when I was starting to think these incubi weren't as insane or evil as the rest of the dark eldar here, she says that…'_ Seiras thought to himself as he tried not to visualize Mairan's description.

"So, you hate Renfaeda as well?" Seiras asked curiously.

"Would you like someone who insulted your appearance and mocked your beliefs every chance she got? Someone who also happened to be politically untouchable, famous, and insufferably arrogant?" Mairan countered.

Realizing how foolish his question sounded, Seiras decided to change the subject, "What's your opinion about Archon Faelan?"

"I am sworn to protect Faelan and I will until his death. I am thankful that he is not a coward like most archons, however. The story of his rise to power is known to our shrine. Did you know that he killed the former archon and his entire incubi host by himself? That's how he was able to afford 15 incubi from our shrine. He's a great warrior and we all respect him." Mairan stated factually.

' _15? I thought were there were only 12 of them…'_ Seiras thought confused.

Tullarias spoke up again after her explanation, "Besting Renfaeda Aeshul in combat might be problematic, Mairan. She's almost as skilled as Lelith Hesperax according to the majority of arena critics. They had her ranked at number 2 or 3 last I saw. I wouldn't call her a great warrior, but she's undoubtedly just as lethal as Archon Faelan. They are twins after all."

"Who is Lelith Hesperax?" Seiras wondered.

"The most famous succubus in Commorragh. She was the leader of the Cult of Strife before leaving. I believe she left Commorragh to join the Ynnari," Tullarias said carelessly.

Seiras cocked his head in confusion, "Who are the Ynnari? I've heard that name a couple of times now."

"They're a multi-faction Eldar group that worships Ynnead, the god of the dead. Their high priestess is a former corsair and craftworlder exile from Biel-Tan named Yvraine. Vect has declared her an enemy of Commorragh, and all eldar that join the Ynnari are typically considered enemies. You can get the details later from Archon Faelan. I'm certain he will tell you more about them as the Kabal we're at war with is in an open alliance with the Ynnari. We'll likely be killing many of them in the not too distant future," he replied.

' _Hopefully they stay at war with each other. Craftworlders and Dark Eldar joining forces doesn't sound like a very good thing for the Imperium,'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"A moment ago you two mentioned that Faelan had 15 incubi…I've only seen 12 of you. Perhaps I miscounted?" Seiras said slowly.

Tullarias nodded, "Some craftworld exarch slaves killed a few of us. The Striking Scorpion exarch killed two, and the banshee exarch Sorellia killed our last klaivex. You'll recall she was the one dancing for the archon when we arrived."

"I imagine that angered you greatly, yes?" Seiras asked carefully as he didn't want to alert them about his inside knowledge on what happened. For some reason, he was also curious about their opinion on Sorellia.

Mairan put her helmet back on a moment later and scoffed, "She claimed that she was a real warrior of Khaine and insulted our order. I wiped that smug pride right off of her pretty face as I bested her in melee combat. I am the klaivex now and she's no better than a common whore."

' _Klaivex must be some higher-ranking incubus,'_ Seiras thought curiously.

"Where are these other exarchs? I haven't seen any craftworlders," Seiras pretended not to know as he asked curiously.

Tullarias shrugged, "One of the slave chambers. Melisara asked for them to be kept close. It might even be the one you were in. It doesn't really matter at this point. They're all broken and hopeless now…as well as boring. Besides, they're useless cowards without their armour."

"So Mairan's the leader of the incubi here?" Seiras asked.

"She's one of four klaivexes from our shrine and the newest one. I happen to be the other one currently in Faelan's service. Technically, I am her senior, but I don't outrank her. Our shrine is led by an incubus hierarch who trains new recruits. He is our actual leader if you disregard our contracts to the archon," Tullarias answered.

' _So they're both like the incubus equivalents of a sergeant then and a hierarch is like a captain or a chapter master?'_ Seiras thought.

"I thought a hierarch was a Kabal rank though," the librarian said doubtfully.

"An incubus hierarch is similar to a craftworld exarch…though far deadlier and more prestigious. They lead shrines and battles and they train new recruits. A Kabal hierarch is a first among Dracons that acts as an Archon's second in command. The two ranks are rarely confused however as a Kabal hierarch's title comes after the name. You'll also rarely ever encounter an incubus hierarch in service to an archon," Tullarias elaborated calmly.

Looking over at Mairan again, Seiras changed the subject, "How common are female incubi? Are they as rare as male succubi?"

"Why are you still asking me stupid questions monkeigh?!" Mairan practically spat at him.

The librarian remained calm as he shook his head, "You don't have to answer then."

"Why do you care to know such things? What relevance does any of this have to you?!" Mairan asked him.

He shook his head as he focused his gaze on her again, "None at all, but I figure if I have to be in Commorragh indefinitely, then I might as well understand the culture, the politics, and the inhabitants."

An almost pained sigh escaped Mairan's mouth as she decided to answer, "They're more common than you might think. At least 1 in 10 Incubi in Commorragh are female. You typically won't be able to tell however since we wear real armour."

Seiras simply nodded at Mairan as he looked away. _'This is actually interesting information. Next time I'm at a Watch Station I should update our knowledge on Dark Eldar culture and ranks. It might be a good idea to catalogue this new Ynnari faction as well. Assuming I can even escape first…'_

"Since we've answered your questions, space marine, I have one for you. How exactly do monkeigh create space marines?" Tullarias broke the awkward silence drawing Seiras from his thoughts.

"We're normal humans when we're young, but we go through genetic conditioning and years of training before undergoing surgeries and finally growing into a full Astartes," he answered honestly.

Tullarias seemed confused, "Why not do this to all of your kind then? Regular monkeigh are pathetic."

Seiras shook his head, "Not all people are compatible with the process. It has a high attrition rate. It also doesn't work on females."

"Why are you so curious about eldar? How do you know so much about our kind and better yet, why do you care to know so much?" Mairan demanded.

"As a Deathwatch space marine, my primary mission is killing dangerous aliens that normal Imperial forces can't handle. The more I know about them, the easier they are to kill," Seiras answered.

Mairan scoffed at him, "No…that's not what I'm talking about. There's more to it than that. You actually know about our culture as well as rank structures and religion. What exactly do you know about Khaine? You seem to be aware that only Incubi worship Khaine in Commorragh. That's not common knowledge for monkeigh, nor is it tactically relevant to know."

"I specialized in studying Eldar…that's why the Ordo Xenos recruited me into Deathwatch. I have a lot of experience killing craftworlders and dealing with their technology," Seiras answered with vague honesty.

"Tell us then, what do you know about Khaine?" Tullarias asked.

"Khaine is the God of War for the eldar race. From what I understand, the aspect warriors venerate him. I was under the impression most of the dark eldar were atheists except for incubi. If I may ask, why do you oppose craftworld eldar if you believe in the same gods?" the librarian countered.

Mairan looked away as a low sigh escaped her, "Those pretenders call upon Khaine out of desperation…not respect. They would suckle at Isha's tits and live under Asuryan's reign if they could. To be a true warrior of Khaine is to sacrifice the weak and to challenge the strong. It is to punish the deceivers like Vaul and Isha, and to smite the wickedness of Slaanesh. To know Khaine is to know murder, hatred, and vengeance. It is the euphoria and wrath one feels when destroying their enemies. Those pathetic aspect warriors know nothing of what it is to worship Khaine."

Tullarias nodded in agreement as he joined the conversation, "We also don't take them seriously because the cowards wear spirit stones in battle and most of them repress their real personalities to adopt the aspect of their particular shrine. Only exarchs and phoenix lords have truly become warriors of Khaine…and even still, it's not the wearer's real personality. They fuse with the former exarch's residual psychic consciousness within the armour, and when they die, the next exarch does the same with theirs. How can we respect that?"

"They call that being lost on the path, don't they? Why is that exactly?" Seiras asked.

"Craftworlders are different from us. They compartmentalize their minds and repress it into different personalities and identities depending on their different aspects. To become lost of the path of the warrior is to wholly accept that identity and no other. It consumes their very being and all former parts of their identity are lost forever," Tullarias explained.

"So what about that banshee exarch then? Why is she acting like that? And if she's a warrior of Khaine, why treat her that way?" Seiras trailed off.

"It's the rite of domination. She lost a fair fight and that means she has no right to dignity or respect anymore. Faelan also shattered her psyche by destroying her purpose, her pride, and her very identity. Without her armour, it was easy to separate her from the exarch identity. She's suffering some type of split personality between her warrior self and her real self. Despite what they think, exarchs can relapse from the Path of the Warrior. Sometimes she gets extremely violent and kills someone and other times she acts like the broken whore she's become. It's all rather pathetic." Mairan scoffed.

' _So Faelan broke her aspect identity then? That would definitely explain her lack of restraint or pride. It makes me wonder what she'll be like if her exarch personality reverts back to its original state. Kalyra told me that exarchs fuse with the personality of the former exarch that wore their armour and that they're forever changed even when they're not in it. Still, Sorellia could possibly regain her senses if she got her armour back. Then again...do I want her in a position where she could take vengeance against me for what we did?'_ Seiras pondered briefly.

"So the archon caused her to relapse from the path of the warrior? How's that possible?" Seiras shook his head disbelievingly.

"Who knows, but that just goes to show how flawed the Craftworlders and their backwards lifestyles are. That kind of thing would never happen to us. I don't understand why you monkeigh call us dark eldar. We're the real eldar race. The Asuryani craftworlders are nothing like the primordial Aeldari…we're the last remnant of the ancient paragons. They're outcasts…the lowest tiers of old empire that fled before the fall. Our way is true and theirs is false. We prove it every time we break one of them." Mairan ranted.

' _Was Faelan messing with me when he said they don't talk much? I mean I know I'm asking questions, but they're still answering me. Maybe they just don't speak much around him or the others? This is actually an interesting conversation though. I might actually be able to help Sorellia,'_ the librarian thought curiously.

"What makes craftworlders so different than the original eldar other than their minds being compartmentalized? They possess psychic powers like your ancestors did. Doesn't that make them more in tune with the ancients than your kind?" Seiras pointed out.

"There's a monkeigh word that best describes how we see them. To us, they are what humans might call nomadic hermits or gypsies," Tullarias interjected.

"I've never heard that word before…what exactly is a gypsy?" Seiras asked.

Tullarias shrugged, "From what I understand, it refers to an uncivilized wayward mystic or something like that. Asdrubael Vect once made the comparison and has taken to calling them that. He's very old and he knows a great deal about monkeigh history and culture. I believe he learned that word from an unkillable slave and found it to be an amusing insult to the craftworlders as its likeness is very accurate in describing them."

"Unkillable slave? What do you mean by that?!" the space marine shot back.

"It was a slave that would come back to life after being tortured or killed. Lelith Hesperax killed the monkeigh in an arena battle and Vect witnessed it. There might be arena footage of it somewhere back at the palace, but it's hardly a concern to us," Tullarias explained.

' _How could someone come back to life on their own after being killed? I should investigate that if I get the chance,'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"Enough talking! The spire is dead ahead. Get on the dark lance, space marine," Mairan announced as she grabbed ahold of the front one.

"Get ready, we're going in." Tullarias announced with a stoic and chilling malice.

 **Khestri Spire, Ground Level**

As the ravager flew lower towards an impressive looking spire, Seiras examined its defenses. It had towers lined with heavy anti-aircraft weapons and looked like a fortress. Many vehicles and ships were flying to and from the port as their ravager flew in approaching a dock.

A communication came over the ravager's speakers as Tullarias piloted closer towards their foundry, **"Your ravager's identity codes are not coming up on our systems! Identify yourself and state your business or we'll blow you out of the sky!"**

Tullarias immediately responded to the transmission, **"Archon Faelan sends his regards."**

Before the other eldar could even respond, Tullarias cut off the transmission. He then flew in closer towards the foundry when weapons fire began to open up on their ravager. Seiras was somewhat concerned with the enormous amount of firepower that was grazing past them on this nearly suicidal descent.

A couple of shots managed to hit them, but he was amazed to see a shield of some kind protect the ravager from direct ordinance. It looked suspiciously familiar to the type of shield that protected the archon's pavilion at the arena. This must have been new or rare dark eldar technology as he had never seen it previously in his life.

Mairan and Tullarias both seemed unusually calm and disciplined as they went to work doing their jobs. Tullarias avoided most of the anti-aircraft weapons as they came in closer to land. By this time, many other raiders, ravagers, and reavers were taking off to come after them. A few raven fighters and even a razorwing also flew around to shoot them from behind.

Mairan opened fire with the front dark lance cannon blowing apart incoming targets with remarkable precision and speed. As Tullarias banked right, she immediately moved towards the left cannon and effortlessly took out the pursuing ships with terrifying accuracy. Seiras wasted no time doing the same as he fired the right dark lance into flanking and rear enemies. Dozens of vehicles were easily blown out of the sky sending their riders free-falling to certain death.

The other ravagers and raiders weren't really any kind of challenge to theirs, but the encroaching razorwing and its raven escort all began to open fire. They flew tenaciously behind the ravager as their weapons began to make it through the shield.

Catching Seiras slightly off guard, Tullarias immediately hard reversed as he took cover between two of the ravens. The fighters could barely react to the maneuver as they got caught in the crossfire of anti-aircraft guns.

The more dangerous razorwing tried to ram them out of the sky, and almost succeeded until Tullarias reversed and banked left. Mairan, now at the front again, fired at the rear of the fighter into its engines. With half of its engines blown apart, the fighter could do nothing but spiral out of control and crash into the spire.

Eventually the anti-aircraft weapons were unable to hit their ravager as it reached the foundry's ground level. Swarms of other vehicles took this opportunity to surround and open fire on them. It's unique shields held as Tullarias piloted it in sweeping arcs while Seiras and Mairan shot down other vehicles and platforms.

Seiras focused primarily on blasting the pilots of these particular vehicles, which would cause them all to go crashing or flying away. As scourges began to land all around and focus fire with dark lance rifles, their shields were beginning to flicker.

"Close your eyes, monkeigh…even your helmet won't shield your eyes from this," Mairan announced as she threw a unique looking disk-shaped grenade off of the ravager.

Seiras did as he was told, and while his eyes were closed, he heard a devastating explosion that echoed all around them.

Once the explosion ended, Seiras opened his eyes to a blinding bright light. Mairan had apparently used some type of special flash bang grenade from what he could tell. Taking advantage of the blinded enemies surrounding them, the three of them began to easily wipe out dozens of vehicles and inhabitants in the foundry. By the time they recovered from the blinding light, most of them were dead.

Tullarias made sure to run over anyone he could as he did a few more loops around the port. Seiras and Mairan both used their dark lance cannons to blow apart any parked vehicles or unfortunate victims remaining during all the chaos. Several minutes passed as this slaughter continued, and before long everyone in the foundry was dead, and every vehicle was destroyed or disabled.

None of them said anything as Tullarias parked the ravager at the far end of the Foundry under some cover. He locked its systems down a moment later as the three warriors dismounted the heavy weapon platform. Moving with incredible haste and silence, Mairan and Tullarias began to run across the foundry bridge and towards the spire interior.

Seiras followed after them as fast as he could and was barely able to keep up. Nevertheless, as they all crossed the bridge, they killed a number of scourges and kabalites along the way. No words were spoken as the three of them silently and swiftly massacred their way into the spire's entrance. Seiras primarily used his bolter to blow apart warriors with single shots, but he saved ammo whenever he could as he cleaved enemies in half with the Nemesis Force Halberd. Its new upgrades were extremely evident as the weapon tore through anything its blade touched.

Fortifications were set up in many different areas during their endless advance, but a majority of the enemies tried to hide or flee the moment they saw the Incubi and Seiras. In a way, this reminded Seiras of the way he recently cleared out the rebels on Corun. Mairan and Tullarias were horrifically skilled at killing and while they weren't as fast as wyches, the two of them ripped through the other Drukhari with pathetic ease. From Seiras' point of view, watching incubi fight kabalites was like watching space marines fight PDF forces. Nothing the kabalites did could stop them. Their warsuits were no joke either by the looks of things. He witnessed Tullarias and Mairan take direct fire from blasters, splinter rifles, and shredders on more than one instance. None of these attacks barely seemed to faze them at all as the two of them swiftly carved apart the room's inhabitants. Those they didn't murder with their klaives were shot to death by the scorpion-tailed splinter guns on their tormentor helms.

' _Their armour is the most impressive I've seen of any Dark Eldar. These two are like tanks compared to others in here,'_ Seiras thought briefly as the trio finished clearing out the entire entrance fortification of the spire.

A number of captured slaves that had recently been relocated to this spire were on the ground either shaking in fear or trying to hide. Mairan and Tullarias ignored them as they both continued without a word. Seiras followed behind the two incubi as they all continued an endless slaughter during their long ascent through the spire.

Thousands of dark eldar died in their tireless advance through the Khestri spire. Many of them were now trueborn judging by the looks of their armour and weapons. Seiras quickly figured that the trueborn defending the Khestri family must have been vassal families to their main family. There were tiers upon tiers of nobility it seemed.

He was somewhat surprised that none of these enemies even tried to flee during their ascent. They were likely too proud to abandon their home and figured three enemies couldn't kill them all. How wrong they were…

A great number of them expressed absolute fear and shock from the incubi and complete terror from Seiras himself. The librarian was much deadlier in his power armour and nigh unstoppable in it against the unsuspecting nobles.

Many begged for mercy when it became apparent that their resistance was futile. Unfortunately for them, they were slaughtered without a second thought. After what felt like half a day, the three blood-soaked warriors reached the very top floor of the Khestri spire.

Coming around its ornately grotesque staircase to the penthouse estate, Mairan blocked Seiras from charging forward, "Wait, monkeigh! There's more traps."

"What do they have set up? Are these like the last few?" Seiras asked her as he looked down at the incubus.

Tullarias briefly peered over the staircase and looked around the room, "It's not like the crude traps we've avoided up until now. They have that hallway rigged to explode with dark matter and three sides of high ground cover right past it."

"What do you suppose we do then?" Seiras asked.

"Tullarias, go get some of those slaves we passed earlier. Throw one down there to activate the trap. We'll charge through once it's been discharged," Mairan suggested.

Tullarias wasted no time disappearing to retrieve an unfortunate victim. This was the first time since they got to the spire that Seiras had stood still.

He glanced at Mairan and addressed her during their brief moment of unmoving silence, "Do you think any of the nobles escaped? There's more than one way up and down this spire from what I've seen.

"I'm certain some did, but I don't really care about the minor nobles. The Khestri family would never abandon their spire lest they surrender their political power in Commorragh and within the Kabal. They are all bunkered down on this top floor. If there are survivors back down there, they will ensure that word is spread of Faelan's retribution against these traitors," Mairan stated.

Seiras nodded at her explanation as he stared at the trap filled corridor up ahead, _'They could have easily let me run into that trap and draw fire for them. Strange that they didn't do that. Maybe these incubi actually are honourable.'_

"Why didn't you just let me run into the trap?" Seiras decided to ask Mairan.

She turned her head at him and said nothing. An awkward silence followed as Mairan turned away without answering him for a moment.

"Faelan wants you alive. Plus, it would be waste to sacrifice you when we could just as easily throw a slave down there. You've proven useful up until now and I see no reason to discard you," Mairan finally spoke.

Before Seiras could respond, he heard Tullarias coming up the stairs again. He had two human slaves he was guiding upstairs. They looked completely terrified and were begging for mercy as his Klaive lightly nudged them all the way up the stairs.

"Forward now…" Tullarias said darkly to them. They both trembled fearfully as they collapsed on the ground crying pathetically. Both were women and relatively young by the looks of it.

One looked at Seiras as if expecting him to help as she cried, "Angel, please help us!"

"I'm not an angel," Seiras said coldly.

"Emperor, no!" one of the women cried as Tullarias picked her up off the ground and pushed her forward.

He spoke with heartless anger, "Keep moving or I'll skin you alive!"

She slowly walked down the hallway as Tullarias shot his tormentor helm's splinter gun at her feet causing her to shriek and move faster. The other woman still lying on the ground screamed in terror when she saw the other woman's body get ripped apart from the hallway's dark matter traps.

As the dark matter discharged, it practically destroyed half the hallway as well.

"Make sure there are no more traps," Tullarias said heartlessly to other human woman as he lifted her up and pushed her in the same direction.

She screamed in horror as she tried to hold onto him, "No, masters! PLEASE! I swear I'll do anything! Please No! NOOO!"

Mairan quickly peeled the woman off of Tullarias and practically tossed her halfway down the hallway. No traps were triggered, but the woman was wailing in absolute terror as she remained on the ground refusing to move.

"She won't move…just throw her all the way down," Tullarias sighed in annoyance.

"Throw her down the hallway space marine. There might be a second set of traps in the open chamber up ahead," Mairan instructed Seiras.

The librarian nodded as he walked over towards the woman who was begging for her life in incoherent pleas. "Emperor, please! I've always been faithful! I don't deserve this!" the woman cried out to nobody in particular.

Her terror amplified even more as Seiras picked her up off the ground. She clutched onto him as tightly as possible, "NO! NO! NO! I'll do anything! ANYTHING! Angel, don't do this to me!"

Seiras felt a wave of guilt wash over him as he looked at the woman's eyes. She was suffering from pure despair. "Emperor curse you, false angel!" she finally gained some resolve when it became apparent that she was going to die.

Without a second thought, Seiras tossed her all the way down the hallway. She struck the ground violently as her body went sliding into the open area ahead. No traps triggered much to Seiras' surprise.

"It looks clear, let's continue," Tullarias said carelessly.

"That room up ahead has three points of cover with high ground. We should split up in order to draw away their fire. We'll rush the two side stairwells first, you follow afterwards," Mairan commanded Seiras as she and Tullarias took point.

The trio continued down the hallway and into the next room. Both incubi charged up adjacent staircases as the moved to sweep aside fortifications. As Seiras ran in, a large amount of firepower opened up on him.

He tanked his way through it as he unloaded his storm bolter into a swathe of bunched enemies. Their ornate spire's architecture offered little cover against his weapons as Seiras easily slaughtered many of them.

"False angel! False angel! False angel!" the woman Seiras tossed down the hallway earlier was still alive and repeating those words.

Seiras ignored her as he moved up the stairs himself. He briefly looked around for Mairan and Tullarias. Both were slaughtering the remnants of the enemies' last defenses. He caught sight of Tullarias catching a scourge and ripping her wings off as he brutally hacked her apart.

Mairan was busy going after the Khestri family themselves. As the two of them forced the surviving enemies further into a corner overlooking the spire's balcony, Seiras caught sight of a figure slipping past them stealthily.

Deciding to go after it, he quickly pursued the fleeing individual through a number of rooms towards an opposite chamber of the top floor. He finally caught the individual upon blowing a doorway in front of them down and cornering them.

He already knew it was an eldar judging by how fast they were able to move. As he examined the individual, he realized it was a Drukhari female noble. She looked somewhat young, though it was impossible to really tell with dark eldar.

"Wait, please don't kill me space marine. I can help you if you help me. Let me speak," she practically whispered as she looked at Seiras desperately.

Deciding to humor her briefly, he tilted his head, "Who are you?"

"Shiralyn Khestri…my father is the duke of this spire. I know you're here to kill us all, but please listen to me. I have a ship near my personal quarters. Help me escape and I'll make it worth your while," she suggested fearfully as she looked past him hoping the incubi weren't nearby.

"You have nothing I want," Seiras said carelessly.

"I can help you escape Commorragh. Please, just come with me to my family's ship. We can fly out of here together," she whispered softly.

Seiras looked at her doubtfully, "Assuming I could trust someone as desperate as you, where would we go?"

"To join the Ynnari or some corsairs. They're not enemies of your Imperium, and they could help us both. Wherever it is, I sure as hell don't want to be stuck here. If you come with me, I can get you back to your own kind and I don't have to die. C'mon, let's get out of here. I swear I'll set you free if you help me escape. We don't have much time." she practically begged.

Her offer was very tempting. Had he not been aware of the Ferrus Manus clone in Melisara's lab, Seiras likely would have taken her offer without a second thought. She seemed desperate enough for this offer to be true as well.

"No…" Seiras responded to her, "that's not going to happen."

"Are you daft?! I'm offering to get you out of Commorragh if you help me! Do you have any idea how impossible it is for a monkeigh to get out of the webway? C'mon, I know some corsairs we can escape with!" she tried to reinforce her point.

Before Seiras could say another word, he heard Mairan's voice from behind, "Is she trying to bribe you with freedom?"

Glancing back at her, Seiras noticed Mairan standing at the doorway behind him. She laughed almost evilly, "Good job catching the runaway."

"I'll give you whatever you want! Kill her and escape with me! You won't ever get another chance like this!" Shiralyn pleaded.

Seiras shook his head, "I don't think so."

Seeing she had no other choice, Shiralyn immediately tried to bolt past the two of them as she narrowly passed by Seiras. The librarian turned around swiftly and was shocked that she even managed to juke past Mairan.

Her escape was short lived as Tullarias tripped her a moment later further down the corridor. Seiras and Mairan quickly pursued and could hear her screaming protests as Tullarias held her by her long lavender hair.

"I was wondering where his daughter was," Tullarias said with a light chuckle as he stomped on Shiralyn's foot causing her to scream in pain.

"Did you kill the rest of them already?" Mairan asked him.

He nodded, "They're all dead. Let's gather up the heads. Put them on a rack for the space marine carry out of here."

"Are you going to finish her off?" Mairan asked Tullarias as Shiralyn pathetically writhed in his grip.

"Faelan might want her…let's bring her back alive," Tullarias suggested as he dragged the screaming noble back towards the staircase.

She attempted to pull out a dagger and cut her own hair out of his grip but failed when Mairan grabbed her arm. The incubus easily ripped the dagger out of her grip and tossed it as far as possible.

"I don't want this annoying bitch to keep trying to escape. Can we just kill her?!" Mairan protested.

"Chain her to him. She won't be able to do anything then," Tullarias instructed casually.

As they dragged Shiralyn back to the scene of her butchered family's corpses, Mairan immediately picked up a slave collar and chain from a nearby dead slave girl. She wasted no time putting it on the surviving noble's neck before chaining her arms and collar to Seiras' armour.

" **Try running away now you stupid bitch,"** Mairan said hatefully in her own language to the surviving noble.

" **Why's a space marine working for the archon?!"** she demanded.

Tullarias and Mairan ignored her question as they went about collecting heads from the dead nobles around the top floor. The larger incubus put them all on a spiked trophy rack before attaching it to Seiras' power armour next to the Kabal banner. Mairan held up the head of Shiralyn's father to her while this was happening, **"You want to carry your father's head?"**

A moment later, tears fell down her face as the lavender haired noble looked away with grief-stricken eyes. Seiras was somewhat surprised to see Shiralyn actually crying at the sight of her dead family. Part of him was bewildered by the sight of a dark eldar mourning the death of anyone. _'She actually cared about her family. Strange considering she was quick to abandon them and save herself.'_

" **You'll pay for this…maybe not by my hand, but you will answer for this crime!"** she shouted.

 **"And you will answer for your crimes in conspiring against the archon,"** Mairan countered with calm hatred.

Shiralyn went silent as she felt despair overwhelming her. She could only watch sadly as Mairan and Tullarias finished mounting heads on the new trophy rack Seiras had strapped to his back. The heads that didn't fit on Seiras' armour were all individually hung with chains from Mairan and Tullarias' back-spike armour racks.

"That's all of them. 14 heads minus hers," Tullarias said in gothic as he and Mairan began to descend the stairs. Upon reaching the bottom, they saw the same human woman from before incoherently crying. She spat at Seiras again upon seeing him, "You disgrace the emperor, false angel! FALSE ANGEL!"

To Mairan and Tullarias' complete shock, Seiras shot her with his storm bolter a moment later. They both turned back and looked at him briefly.

"I'm glad you shut her up, because I was about to," Mairan said approvingly.

Shiralyn was completely silent now as she was forced to follow Seiras. Her arms and neck were all chained together and attached to a long chain from Seiras' waist. She followed about a meter or so behind him in curious silence as she examined the way he and the incubi interacted.

"Why didn't you accept her offer, space marine?" Mairan asked Seiras with curiosity in her voice.

"What offer?" Tullarias interjected.

"She offered to free him if he helped her escape. He refused," Mairan explained.

Tullarias tilted his head in surprise at Seiras, "That's strange. I would have taken that offer in your position, monkeigh."

"Your kind are notorious for deception. I had no reason to trust her. Besides, you already threatened me if I tried to escape," Seiras said shaking his head.

"Faelan will appreciate your loyalty. You were wise to ignore this spoiled brat's offer. She couldn't even defend her own family. How could she have helped you?" Mairan noted.

"Let's get out of here," Tullarias said coolly as the four of them took the long descent back down. After a few hours of backtracking, they were finally on the ground level of the top spire.

Exiting outside and crossing the bridge back to the foundry, Seiras took this opportunity to look down over the edges. The spire kept going down a considerable distance, and he couldn't help but wonder how many kilometers tall this spire actually was. The part that they cleared only seemed to be the top third of it by his estimate.

They wasted no time reaching the ravager in the foundry again. Seiras was actually confused as to why nobody tried to destroy it or set up any kind of ambush on their escape. He quickly figured none of the survivors cared enough to be involved anymore.

As they got onto the ravager, they each took their former positions. Shiralyn sat down behind Seiras and in front of Tullarias as the ravager began to fly away.

She had a hopeless and distant expression on her face as she looked onto the horizon. Seiras couldn't even begin to fathom what horrible fate awaited her, and honestly didn't want to think about it.

 **Commorragh, Palace Spire Foundry**

The entire flight back was spent in absolute silence. Not one of them spoke a single word during the return and it was starting to become uncomfortably awkward for Seiras. He dismissed his discomfort as he kept a disciplined focus. He spent the majority of the flight back deep in thought as he reflected over the possibility of having to help this Kabal fight another one.

He also wondered a lot about the Ynnari. He found Shiralyn's words about them very interesting, _'They're not enemies of the Imperium? Why though?'_

" **This is Ravager 1…requesting permission to land,"** Tullarias spoke into a transmission.

" **Ravager 1 confirmed. You're clear to dock,"** a voice responded.

As their ravager flew towards the foundry, Seiras took this opportunity to look at the nearby ships docked all around the foundry. There was a number of cruisers near the foundry that were suspended in the air next to the spire. He wondered which one would be easiest to commandeer, but felt a bit of concern when he noticed a larger battleship was docked above the other ships at the foundry.

' _It might be a good idea to steal a smaller ship so we can outmaneuver and outfly that behemoth. One of those frigates might work. I'll need to do some more research before committing to one though,'_ Seiras thought as he examined the archon's flagship and several other nearby vessels.

After landing in the foundry's hanger dock, Seiras and the two Incubi all dismounted the ravager. The librarian silently followed behind Tullarias and Mairan and couldn't help but wonder where they were going to next.

Upon seeing their return, many kabalites, scourges, and other inhabitants in the foundry all turned to stare and gawk at them with shock. The ones that weren't wearing helmets had looks of disbelief plastered on their faces.

They all parted for the three warriors and their captive as they returned to the palace. Along the way, Seiras could hear many of them whispering or talking blatantly about the sight of the Khestri family's heads decorating their armour.

Many seemed particular horrified that Seiras was also involved in this. As they passed into the palace and headed up towards Faelan's throneroom, they passed by many nobles and other individuals who all appeared to be heading upstairs as well. Many actually gasped when they saw the heads on all of their armomur

As they nearly reached Faelan's throneroom, a nearby kabalite addressed them, "Incubi, Archon Faelan is in the war council with the noble court and the Kabal leaders. He asked me to bring you there if you returned before he was finished."

Tullarias nodded as he, Mairan, and Seiras all followed the kabalite into an adjacent chamber further away.

Upon reaching it, Seiras could hear a great number of pompous sounding eldar arguing about something. The guards standing outside of the court chamber didn't even bother stopping the incubi when they saw them but turned their heads blatantly when they saw Seiras pass by with Shiralyn chained to him.

As they entered the noble court, Seiras could see a number of lavishly dressed Drukhari nobles sitting around in an amphitheater like chamber.

Faelan was standing on some type of stage addressing them all as he paced aggressively, **"And I expect each of you to supply these kabalites! If your houses intend on remaining in the graces of MY Kabal, then you will pay your dues! Is that understood?!"**

 **"Archon Faelan, a word if you will!"** One noble interrupted, **"What guarantee do we have that your Kabal is even a match for Velatha's Kabal of the Bladed Sun? It is no secret to anyone that she has the support of Lady Aurelia Malys. Why should we continue paying your Kabal when there's no guarantee of our own superiority? If Lady Malys deploys her Poisoned Tongue Kabal to help them, we'll be-"**

 **"We'll be killing twice as many enemies! I will not tolerate such blatantly fickle support from you sniveling curs! Lord Vect has already promised me the aid of his Black Heart Kabal should Lady Malys deploy her Kabal. I suggest you all grow a spine and act worthy of your positions!"** Faelan growled.

It didn't take long for everyone's gaze to turn upon the new arrivals as they approached Faelan in front of the noble court. Many of them looked petrified when they saw the heads decorating the warriors' armour.

" **Is that…the Khestri family?! Lady Shiralyn Khestri as well?!"** One noble announced with disbelief.

Faelan actually smiled cruelly as he motioned for them to flank him, **"I wasn't expecting you back so soon."**

" **The space marine's aid cut the purge's time in half. He's very good at killing in close quarters,"** Mairan stated factually.

" **Purge?! You had the Khestri family purged?!"** Someone protested angrily.

" **That would explain why they were absent from this meeting…"** another added.

Faelan began to laugh at their disbelief and nodded proudly, **"I certainly did. These traitors were selling our secrets to the Bladed Sun Kabal. Did you honestly expect me to turn a blind eye to traitors?! Nothing escapes my vigilance!"**

" **You sent a space marine to kill them?!"** someone gawked in horror.

The archon nodded, **"I certainly did. The next time any of you even dream about conspiring against me, I'll send him to rape your whole damned family. You're all dismissed for now! I have a prisoner to interrogate!"**

Faelan waved away the nobles causing many of them to disperse from the room. Some moved with a bit more haste than others, but a noticeable few lingered back to eavesdrop on what was going on. The archon's other 10 incubi were stationed all around the room, but they were all staring at Seiras. Part of him wondered why, but he guessed it might have been because Mairan said he was useful.

After all of the nobles were gone, Faelan chuckled approvingly at Tullarias and Mairan, **"Great timing by the way. I couldn't have even planned something that perfect. I see you brought Shiralyn back with you. Did you want to keep her?"**

 **"Mairan was going to kill her, but I believed you might want her for interrogation and as a pet,"** Tullarias answered.

" **The space marine cornered her when she tried to escape. When I followed behind, I heard her try to bribe him. She wanted his help to escape in exchange for his freedom. He refused, surprisingly,"** Mairan added.

" **Really now? That's interesting that he would do that,"** Faelan grinned.

Shiralyn looked at Faelan fearfully, **"Forgive me, Archon Faelan…please! I never supported my father's actions. Most of us had no choice but to follow him. I never wanted to betray the Kabal! I warned my family! I warned all of them not to cross you or Lord Vect! It breaks my heart that they had to die for this."**

Faelan looked unconvinced, **"Oh I'm certain you're an innocent victim in all of this my dear. Still, if you'd like to prove your loyalty to me, then why don't you tell me what Velatha is planning hmm?"**

" **I don't know, archon! I swear by all the muses and the gods that I have no idea what they're planning!"** she said fearfully.

" **Where did you intend on going then if you escaped with Seiras?"** he asked her coyly.

" **To join a corsair fleet or somewhere away from Commorragh,"** the noble lied.

" **Is this true, Mairan?"** the archon asked.

Mairan nodded, **"I only heard half the conversation, but she mentioned knowing corsairs that could help them escape if he agreed. He didn't."**

Faelan glanced over at Seiras now and spoke to him in gothic, "Seiras, I have a question. Did this Khestri girl mention the Ynnari to you?"

"No, she only spoke of escaping Commorragh with a corsair fleet if I helped her," Seiras lied.

Shiralyn eyed him with subtlety and was no doubt shocked that Seiras lied to the archon. She didn't overreact however in order to subvert suspicion.

"Really? Hmm…well I suppose you have no reason to lie about it since you did refuse her offer," Faelan noted.

Shiralyn avoided staring at Seiras as she kept her head down. Part of her couldn't believe the situation as she thought about it for a minute, _'He just lied to cover my lie. Why would he do that if he refused to even escape with me to begin with? Better yet, how did he know to say that? It couldn't have been coincidental that he told them the exact same thing I did. There's no way he could have known to cover me unless he…unless he knew what we were saying! He can understand us! That's the only explanation! No way…a monkeigh learned our language?! Maybe I'm overreacting...but I should definitely try to confirm this.'_

" **Very well…I'll assume this was all a terrible misunderstanding then. In light of recent events and the death of your family, you have my apologies Lady Shiralyn Khestri. I'll grant you a chance to reaffirm your loyalty to the Kabal. You're the new head of the Khestri family. You're free to move about the palace, but I will be holding you here as a highborn hostage until you have wholly earned my forgiveness. Are those acceptable terms my dear?"** Faelan asked.

Shiralyn bowed lowed, **"Yes, Archon Faelan! I am your humble servant my lord Aeshul!"**

" **Good, set her free then,"** Faelan instructed his incubi. Mairan and Tullarias both seemed a bit disappointed at the turn of events as the unchained her from Seiras.

Seiras could tell that Mairan was pissed about the situation, but she and Tullarias maintained their stoic discipline as they didn't say anything.

After she was freed, Faelan tilted his head at her, **"I'm glad you could see reason my lady. A face as beautiful as yours shouldn't be desecrated without good cause. When we reconvene with the court later, I would like you to address them. Come, let us discuss politics."**

" **Of course, my lord!"** she said eagerly as she began to follow Faelan.

"Excellent work, Seiras. We'll speak again later. I have business to deal with for a while. Mairan, Tullarias…please escort him back to Melisara's lab," Faelan ordered as he exited the room with Shiralyn. The other 10 incubi passed by Tullarias and Mairan as they followed Faelan out of the room. They each gave light nods as they departed. Behind them, Seiras spotted Meela again.

He made eye contact with the weird red-headed pariah girl. She was extremely unnerving at this proximity. She had no discernable emotion on her face for a moment as she stopped and stared at him. It was hard to describe how he saw her. Meela looked like a regular woman from some angles and a lifeless mannequin doll with the complexion of flesh from another. Creepy couldn't even begin to describe the spine-tingling unease Seiras felt as the redheaded woman got even closer. She then smiled before making a few gestures with her hands. Seiras immediately recognized it as Astartes sign language.

 _(They all like you, and so do I.)_ she told him in sign language.

 _(How do you know Astartes sign language?)_ he gestured back.

 _(Not now, talk later. Be seeing you.)_ she answered back before swiftly following the other incubi out of the room with Faelan.

Mairan and Tullarias found the exchange interesting and curious, but they didn't say anything about it as they both began to mount Khestri heads all around the room. Tullarias removed the trophy rack from Seiras' back as he mounted it on the court stage. Upon finishing this task, both incubi didn't say a word as they began to walk out of the chamber. Seiras took his cue to follow them and didn't bother looking back.

' _Shiralyn Khestri might make a good guide out of Commorragh during our escape. If she's sympathetic to these Ynnari, then she might be accepting of the craftworlders I'm escaping with. Also, Meela knows Astartes sign language? That's unusual. I wonder who 'they' were that she was referring to?'_ Seiras thought to himself.

As they walked back to Melisara's lab, Mairan finally broke the awkward silence and glanced at Tullarias annoyed, **"We should have butchered that little brat when we had the chance. You let her live just because you wanted to rape her."**

" **I didn't really think she was as attractive as the rumors said she was. Plus she's weak…no sport in taking her. I would have gladly killed her had I known this would happen,"** Tullarias shook his head.

Neither incubus said another word, as the three continued their walk in silence.

 **Melisara's Lab**

Upon returning to the haemonculus' horrific lab, Mairan and Tullarias both stopped at the entrance.

"We'll be seeing you, space marine," Mairan spoke as she and Tullarias both turned to leave.

Seiras was surprised that they would leave him unattended, but quickly figured that they didn't want to deal with Melisara again. Not to mention, they likely trusted him somewhat more now after his refusal to escape with Shiralyn. Walking into Melisara's lab unattended was somewhat unnerving and strange for him as he looked around uncertainly.

One of the wracks quickly noticed his arrival and addressed him, "Monkeigh, Melisara is speaking with guests at the moment. Follow me."

Following the wrack in silence, Seiras took this opportunity to remove his helmet.

As they came around a corner, Seiras spotted five armoured individuals speaking to Melisara. The one in the middle looked extremely familiar and spoke with a voice that he swore he knew, **"We brought these necrons specimens like you asked, Melisara. I must say it was a torturously boring excursion, so I hope it was worth it."**

" **Thank you very much, Tahril! I knew I could count on you to help me with my research projects. As agreed, here is the serum you requested, and I'll have my wracks deliver the rest of your…payment to your personal ship,"** Melisara replied courteously.

 **"Always a pleasure my lady. I do hope to see you return to the Kabal of the Black Heart one day soon,"** Tahril waved at her.

" **Say hello to Vect for me. Tell him he's overdue for a visit,"** Melisara chuckled as Tahril turned around. It was only then that Seiras realized he was an archon and that the four individuals with him were incubi.

Upon spotting Seiras, Tahril's eyes widened in alarm, "A space marine?!"

His four incubi immediately got into fighting stances but remained calm as Seiras didn't move. Tahril examined Seiras briefly as he looked at his armour and face.

"Ah, welcome back, Seiras. How did your purge go?" Melisara asked him wickedly.

"It went well, but we brought back Duke Khestri's daughter alive," Seiras answered.

Tahril's eyes trailed up to the banner on Seiras' power pack and couldn't help but laugh at it, "Ahaha! Faelan has a pet space marine?!"

"Oh yes indeed. The wyches here captured him. He's a Deathwatch space marine. His name is Seiras." Melisara explained.

"He's a Blood Raven librarian. He looks familiar to me," Tahril noted.

Both the librarian and the haemonculus were caught off guard by Tahril's comment.

"You know him?!" Melisara perked up with a grin.

"Kaurava II…we were raiding Tau when we encountered these Blood Ravens. That one right there killed a lot of wyches if I recall correctly. He was one of their leaders. Though he wore blue armour back then," Tahril answered.

Seiras could barely fathom the possibility that Archon Tahril recognized him.

"Awfully dangerous bringing a psyker into Commorragh. A librarian even more so," Tahril noted.

"I built a psionic limiter collar for him and I plugged an agony circuit into his black carapace. He's harmless to us," Melisara said casually as she pressed the trigger switch causing Seiras' collar to activate.

He was thankful his helmet at psychic hood were unplugged as he growled in pain for a few moments. Tahril laughed at the display, "That's interesting. You should send me the blueprints for those. I want a few in case I ever capture space marines alive."

"I would be more than happy to accommodate you with some, Tahril," Melisara beamed as she handed him some type of datapad.

"I should be on my way, but I'll be seeing you, Melisara," Tahril said politely as he departed.

"Likewise dear Tahril," Melisara responded as the black haired archon left her lab.

Seiras eyed Melisara uncertainly, "What was that all about?"

"I had Tahril get some necrodermis for me. Soon, I'll be ready to perfect Ferrus Manus," Melisara cackled wickedly for a moment.

"Am I going to have to fight in this Kabal war, Melisara?" Seiras asked her anxiously.

She nodded, "Without a doubt. That's been boiling over for a while now and it's about to spill across Commorragh. But don't let that bother you. War is what you're built for my dear! Now since we're both here alone and I have some free time, I'd love to give you a full tour of my lab!"

"Of course, Melisara…" Seiras agreed.

They barely made it several meters around the corner before Seiras heard a voice, **"Melisara, can I please speak with you?! I wanted to ask about those body enhancements and…"**

The voice belonged to none other than Aelendriel. The blue and purple haired succubus froze up when she saw Seiras in his full armour with the Kabal banner on it.

"Y-you're alive?! Is this some kind of joke?!" She gawked.

' _They didn't tell her they resurrected me? Well this ought to be interesting.'_ Seiras sighed mentally.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Alright guys…damn do I write some long ass chapters. This one was like 15 k words. Anyways, sorry I didn't write as much battle stuff and action as I promised. I know this chapter might have been a little boring with all the dialogue, but some important plot stuff was introduced. Melisara is unsurprisingly an atheist, but why did she want to talk to Seiras about that in front of the incubi? On that matter, how will this newfound perspective affect Seiras' opinion on gods and daemons?

The incubi were a bit talkative only because they decided to give Seiras a small measure of respect for his success in the arena. How will their opinions change over time now that they've fought beside him and witnessed his "loyalty"? What will the exarchs think if they see a friendly interaction between Seiras and the incubi? Things are definitely going to get dramatic...but you people obviously like that stuff or you wouldn't be here still.

Seiras also learned a lot about the Ynnari this chapter...trust me when I say that that's going somewhere. He even gained a better insight into how he can help Sorellia...but is that really a good idea? Also, what will Shiralyn do now that she suspects Seiras can understand their language? What cool things does Melisara want to show Seiras in her lab? Why does Meela know Astartes sign language? What will Aelendriel say next chapter? What will Nelfaera and Mokaela say? Can we expect Swagmaster Tahril to come in and shit talk people in the future? Damn straight. All that and more will be answered soon!

Sorry to end this chapter on a cliffhanger, but it just had to end somewhere. As you can see, things are building up to this big war...but where will Seiras find the time to resurrect Ferrus Manus or escape during all of this chaos? Stay tuned for the answers and don't let your commissar catch you reading this fic. As always, thanks for reading guys.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19: The Path of Damnation**

Aelendriel's pink eyes were wide with shock as she took a step back for a moment. She glanced behind Seiras when she saw Melisara and immediately voiced her concern, "You resurrected him, Melisara?!"

"Oh of course I did, Aelendriel. Faelan wanted him alive and it would a be a complete waste to let a space marine die permanently here. Why are you so surprised?" Melisara chuckled.

The succubus glanced at Seiras in his full armour and seemed somewhat anxious and uncomfortable now. There was no doubt in his mind that she was worried about him being armed and armoured. He had technically defeated her twice now. The second time had even been without his own armour or weapons. No amount of pride would allow Aelendriel to overlook the danger he now posed. She maintained her arrogant glare, but even he could see past this fake bravado.

Before anyone could say another word, another individual quickly caught their attention, "Oooh, is that Seiras?! How are you?!"

The librarian and Melisara both glanced over behind where Aelendriel was standing and noticed none other than Mokaela running up to her side. The older succubus had a friendly expression on her face and looked genuinely happy to see him.

' _Emperor…what in the warp is she so pleased about? I half-expected her to be furious at the sight of me,'_ Seiras thought as he saw Mokaela come up directly in front of him.

"So that's what your armour looks like huh? I like the black color. That's Deathwatch then? I like your glaive as well. That weapon looks quite dangerous." she chuckled.

"It's a Nemesis Force Halberd actually," he corrected her.

Mokaela shrugged, "Regardless, I like it. You deserve to have a razorflail too. You're really good at using them. I was talking to the lacerai hekatarii about how to improve earlier and told them to emulate your fighting style with it."

"Why would you tell them that? I can't imagine they took it well," he shook his head.

The succubus smirked, "Oh on the contrary, I've never seen the lacerai so motivated before. Seeing a monkeigh use a razorflail better than them has motivated quite a few of our girls to improve. None of them would ever have the humility to admit it, but they respect you now…as do I. Maybe later I can show you some cool tricks."

"I crushed your skull with my bare hands. Why would you feel anything other than contempt and hatred for me?" Seiras questioned her disbelievingly.

"That was rather mild compared to what you did to Aelendriel…though that's the nature of the arena I suppose." Mokaela laughed.

The other succubus looked unhappy about Mokaela bringing her defeat up so humorously. She shook her head, **"This isn't funny, Mokaela! He mutilated and humiliated me in the arena!"**

" **That's the nature of the game, Aelendriel. You're lucky we all got second chances from Melisara. I say we all let bygones be bygones and start anew,"** Mokaela replied.

Aelendriel growled, **"He bit my ear off! You expect me to just get over the fact that this overgrown animal made me look like a bitch in front of everyone?! They were laughing at me!"**

" **Hold a grudge if you insist, but my approval of Seiras has only increased since he beat all of us. He might have even had a decent chance against Renfaeda had he been fresh and uninjured. I'm well-trained in both Drukhari and harlequin battle styles, and I'll respect anyone who can beat me,"** Mokaela shot back.

 **"I watched the vids of his battle with you...how could you fall for an obvious trap like that?!"** Aelendriel demanded.

 **"I already told you, Aelendriel...I expected him to make a last effort, but he moved faster than I anticipated. I underestimated his speed. He was purposely fighting me slower near the end so that he could pull that stunt. We're all technically more skilled than he is, but he is tactically brilliant as a combatant. He picked you and Nelfaera apart pretty easily, and found your weaknesses. It's not completely surprising that found mine too,"** Mokaela responded with her arms crossed.

 _'Actually, I just got lucky...but I'll let her keep thinking that if it helps me out,'_ Seiras thought to himself.

"Mokaela…" Seiras addressed her causing both of the succubi to look at him curiously.

"Yes, Seiras?" she tilted her head with sultry eyes and a coy smile.

"Where does Renfaeda rank among the wyches of Commorragh? Is she one of the best?" he asked her.

The succubus grinned at his question, "Oh, I think she was third or fourth overall. She recently passed up Helica Venomkiss for 2nd place I believe. Renfaeda passed her in approval rating after one-shotting you. Lelith Hesperax is still number one though. Granted, since she's not here anymore, I don't know if her ranking still counts. She joined the Ynnari I think. Vect wasn't pleased about it, but he didn't put out any bounties on her."

"These Ynnari…who exactly are they?" he asked even though he already knew.

"A bunch of lunatics who worship some new Eldar God called Ynnead. They operate under the belief that Ynnead will save the Eldar race from She-Who-Thirsts. Their leader is this ex-gladiator and corsair named Yvraine. She fought Lelith Hesperax in the arena and died…but came back to life and opened a warp tear in Commorragh a good while back. I believe it temporarily broke Khaine's Gate. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but Lelith Hesperax took a host of her wyches and ended up joining these Ynnari afterwards. Last I heard they went through Biel-Tann and messed it up pretty badly. In addition to being a skilled gladiatior, Yvraine is also a super powerful psyker from what I've heard. I'd wager she's very dangerous." Mokaela explained.

"The Ynnari are delusional zealots, but I can't argue with their methods. At least they're proactive in making some much needed changes to the Aeldari as a whole," Melisara noted.

Mokaela's eyes trailed up towards the Kabal banner on Seiras' armour and smirked, "So…it looks like you're working for us now then? I'm rather surprised they let you walk around in your armour and carry weapons. You're dangerous even without them."

" **Melisara, why does he have the Kabal banner on his armour? For that matter, why's he in his armour?!"** Aelendriel practically demanded in her own language as she sent a disapproving glare at Seiras.

" **He just went to wipe out the Khestri family along with two of Faelan's incubi. It was a resounding success from what I heard,"** Melisara answered with amusement.

" **I heard the spire was attacked…I didn't realize it was a purge. How did you convince him to do that? He did it willingly?!"** Aelendriel replied with complete disbelief.

" **Ask Renfaeda or Faelan if you want the details, but Seiras works for the Aeshul family now. Faelan has taken a real liking to him from what I've seen and so have I,"** Melisara grinned.

" **Faelan likes him, does he? That's definitely a good sign. I suppose that means that Seiras fights for us now? Talk about good news,"** Mokaela beamed.

Seiras found Mokaela's approval of the situation unusual but maintained an indifferent expression as he kept pretending to be oblivious to their conversation.

"So you wiped out the Khestri Spire with the incubi, Seiras? How exciting! How did it go?" Mokaela asked warmly.

He shrugged, "We captured Shiralyn Khestri and killed the rest."

"I'm kind of surprised you would obey Faelan or that his incubi would allow you to even help them," Mokaela noted.

"We all had our orders, and we did what we had to do." Seiras replied neutrally.

Aelendriel looked truly confused by the newfound information, **"How did you get his armour and weapons, Melisara? They were in my trophy collection."**

" **His armour and weapons are mine now. I took them as payment for reviving you,"** the haemonculus chirped cheerily.

Aelendriel grimaced angrily, **"What?! But you can't take my trophies!"**

" **I can't? Is that so? And how else did you plan on paying me? You're lucky that's all I wanted from you."** she countered.

" **You know I pay you plenty of my slave stock and all of those-"** Aelendriel didn't get to finish her statement.

Melisara immediately interrupted her, **"His things were all I wanted from you. I have enough slaves at my coven spire to drown a void whale. Besides, Seiras is much more useful to us with his actual wargear. Now if you want those body enhancements you were asking for…that's going to cost you even more. I also took that webway remote you had in your trophy collection. You can consider that a down payment."**

" **Why do I have pay extra?! What about Mokaela or Nelfaera?!"** Aelendriel protested.

" **I already paid Melisara with one of the spare holo-suits that daddy gave me. What's this about a webway remote though?"** Mokaela interjected.

" **Why would you take my webway remote, Melisara?!"** the succubus almost squeaked as she ignored Mokaela.

" **It's not yours. It was Seiras' webway remote, wasn't it?"** the haemonculus smiled with sinister amusement.

Mokaela perked up with curiosity, **"Seiras had a webway remote?"**

" **He did indeed,"** Melisara added.

" **How did you even know it was his to begin with? I didn't tell anyone about it!"** Aelendriel said urgently without even bothering to deny the claim anymore.

" **Well it's completely obvious to me that nobody around here would have had one like this. This webway remote is a harlequin one, and I highly doubt you have the skill to steal from or kill a harlequin troupe. Even Mokaela doesn't own one of these and her father's a troupe master. The only person you could have stolen it from was Seiras,"** Melisara explained factually as she held up the unique looking remote.

" **He had one of those?! Only elite harlequins carry those kind! He could get into the Black Library with that!"** Mokaela gasped.

 _'What's the Black Library?'_ Seiras wondered. He had heard mention of it before, but had no clue what it really was.

Aelendriel gave Melisara a disapproving look, **"I would prefer to keep it, but I suppose I don't have a choice in the matter."**

" **I'm glad you're so agreeable,"** Melisara responded with a sly smile.

The succubus scoffed in annoyance, **"It's yours then, but you better not ask me for anything else as payment. That thing was priceless. I want my body enhancements in exchange. I don't have anything else to pay you with besides slaves and resources."**

" **Perhaps I can accept those terms. All I ask is that you two keep this a secret. If anyone finds out about this remote and I mean ANYONE…then I'll ensure that you two live out the rest of your lives in lower Commorragh as hideous mutants. Is that clear?"** Melisara threatened.

" **I won't say anything,"** Mokaela nodded immediately.

Aelendriel nodded fearfully, **"My lips are sealed, Melisara. I swear by Vect and all the muses that I won't say anything to anyone."**

" **Very good, I'll look into your little body enhancements later Aelendriel. I was about to give Seiras a tour of my lab so you're both free to leave if there's nothing else,"** Melisara returned to a good mood as she levitated next to the Seiras and took his arm.

"Come now, Seiras, let's begin our tour," Melisara said gleefully as she guided Seiras away.

"Can I come along too, Melisara?" Mokaela asked eagerly.

Melisara cocked her head at the succubus curiously, "Certainly, though I am a bit curious as to why?"

"I've never received a tour of this lab, and I rather enjoy Seiras' company and yours," the succubus replied.

"Oh very well, come along Mokaela," she giggled with suspiciously sinister amusement.

Aelendriel immediately spoke up afterward, "If Mokaela is staying for this, I suppose I will too."

"You sure? Nobody is forcing you to. I don't want you to feel obligated to join us," Melisara smirked.

"I've always been curious about your lab too…so I'll stay," Aelendriel insisted.

Melisara smiled approvingly, "Very well, dear Aelendriel. I'll certainly make this worth your while."

Seiras couldn't help but wonder if Melisara had something sinister planned for the succubi. What was more surprising was why Aelendriel even wanted to come along. He quickly and logically deduced that she probably wanted to keep an eye on his and Melisara's friendliness as it was highly unusual. Plus, eldar were inquisitive and suspicious by nature. She likely didn't want to miss out on any gossip.

' _She wants to spy on us maybe…or learn something about why Melisara is so nice to me,'_ Seiras thought as he glanced back at the succubus.

She sent him a nasty glare when they made eye contact, but quickly looked away as he stared at her for a moment. His lingering gaze caused her to look back with annoyance.

"What?! Why are you staring at me, monkeigh?!" Aelendriel hissed.

"Why are you here in Melisara's lab?" he asked her even though he knew the answer.

Aelendriel narrowed her gaze at him, "None of your business. Why does it concern you where I am?"

"I was just curious," Seiras replied with disinterest in his voice.

The succubus rolled her eyes before looking at Seiras again, "Don't start getting a big head just because you beat me. I'll admit you're skilled at fighting for a monkeigh, but that doesn't mean I consider you my equal, space marine. You still lost to Renfaeda in one attack from what I heard, so I suggest you remember your place around here!"

"He's not your equal, Aelendriel. He's better than you," Melisara sassed.

"But I…" Aelendriel couldn't really think of anything to say in her defense as she looked away bitterly.

Mokaela quickly pat her hair and sighed, "Oh cheer up, Aelendriel. You're still beautiful at least. By the way…Seiras, were you serious when you said Nelfaera was better looking than her?"

The librarian shrugged, "I was just trying to make her mad. I actually don't see much of a difference between the two of them other than their hair colours."

"Aelendriel is way prettier than Nelfaera, Seiras…trust me." Mokaela stated.

Seiras sighed, "Does it really matter?"

"You don't think Aelendriel is pretty?" Mokaela asked him.

"She's certainly the most feminine looking one out of all of you. I like her eye colour as well," Seiras admitted.

"Huh?! You like my eye colour?" Aelendriel repeated with evident shock in her voice.

This caused the succubus' face to get flustered in an almost pinkish purple hue. She decided not to respond as she looked away pretending not to care. Part of him wondered if she was blushing, but that seemed unlikely judging by her annoyed expression.

"If your little conversation is done, I will begin my tour now," Melisara interrupted as she gestured for the three of them follow her. Aelendriel followed silently behind Seiras, Mokaela, and Melisara as the haemonculus floated several meters forward.

"Before I show you around Seiras, I should mention that I'm rather unique for a haemonculus. I'm certain you're already aware of some of the reasons why. I'm definitely one of the prettiest you'll ever see. However, when it comes to the disciplines and philosophies of the Haemonculi, I specialize in several of them. Many of my peers consider me odd because I don't wholly commit to one. I once followed philosophies of the Scarlet Epicureans back around the time of the Fall. I would later delve into the mindsets of the Black Cornucopians and I still do to some extent. These days however, I am more aligned with the philosophies of the Masters of Apotheosis. My own apotheosis brought about a change in my perspective. That being said, I try to honour and study all disciplines when I can. I believe there's things to be gained by following all of them to some extent. Because of this, I am typically seen as an independent and open-minded haemonculus. I have close colleagues within many covens including the Prophets of Flesh, the Thirteen Scars, and the Altered. Nevertheless, I'm the leader and founder of the Revenants of Eternity Coven. Most know me better as the _Immortal Revenant_ or _Melisara the Immortal_ ," Melisara explained.

Seiras had never heard of any of those haemonculi covens but was interested in what the various different philosophies meant. He glanced over at her curiously, "Why did you switch your disciplines and priorities of study from the Scarlet Epicureans to the other two? What do these philosophies entail?"

"The Scarlet Epicureans focus purely on sensation and hedonism. Many former deviants within the ancient pleasure cults kept this ideology and mindset. It is one of pure pleasure, adrenaline, and pain. While this may sound similar to modern commorites, it is far more extreme for the haemonculi who pursue it. Those that follow this path are no different than the Eldar that created Slaanesh. They would commit unspeakable depravities out of sheer boredom because they were addicted to the feeling of being alive. They were junkies for sensation and excitement. You have to understand that before the Fall, Eldar were immortal and all-powerful. Even if we died, we could just come back to life. Nothing was a threat to us, and we had nothing to work for. Many of us got bored and sought to indulge in taboo. Anything to distract us from the torture of a post scarcity life in eternal purgatory. For an ambitious scientist like me, it was unbearable having nothing to strive for. So I became addicted to a lot of things," the haemonculus answered distantly.

"Wait…so you were a member of one of those ancient pleasure cults that was responsible for the Fall?" Seiras gawked.

Both Mokaela and Aelendriel seemed curious about Seiras' knowledge on the topic and stared with silent interest at the conversation.

Melisara nodded, "I was indeed, but that was a long, LONG time ago. My maiden years are a distant memory. Honestly, I can barely remember most of them. Anyways, to finish my explanation, the Black Cornucopians focus on hoarding everything in the galaxy that they can take. It's a collectivist mindset. I'm a collector and I'm still a hoarder, so I suppose you could say I never officially grew out of this _'phase'_ as you humans would call it. The Masters of Apotheosis discipline is exactly what it sounds like. It revolves around the belief of constantly bettering oneself and others. Some would even call it self-deification or genetic uplifting. From a direct perspective, that's the one I'm most aligned with now. Though I've transitioned through the other two, I still maintain their teachings and mindsets. Most Masters of Apotheosis followers are usually responsible for the creation of scourges, but I also pursue more advanced gene-modding as I'm sure you know. I even specialize in enhancing wyches if they can afford it…"

"So you're also the leader of the Revenants of Eternity haemonculi coven? What does that coven specialize in?" Seiras asked with unfiltered interest.

"Flesh-crafting, soul-reaping, reanimation, biological enhancements, gene-modding, dark matter engineering, and a whole lot of other things. We're most famous for our reanimation skills though. We're not called the Revenants for nothing. We're also the only coven that has any type of skill at reanimating psykers or pariahs," Melisara beamed.

"Why do you work for Archon Faelan if you were once Asdrubael Vect's haemonculus? That seems like a step down." Seiras asked her.

Melisara tilted her head at him and chuckled at his question, "I was one of Vect's haemonculi, though I do believe I was his favorite. I took this job with Faelan because he gives me plenty of privacy to work on my side projects. At my coven, there are quite a few nosy colleagues that snoop around my work more than I liked, and when I worked for Vect, I was usually busy most of the time with his affairs. In addition to my private set up here, Faelan also pays me very well in slaves, resources, and favors. The fact that I like him personally is just a nice little perk to add on top."

Aelendriel was staring bewildered at Melisara and Seiras during their conversation. She was hopelessly confused by their civility and especially by Seiras' insight and curiosity for Melisara.

"When did you two get so friendly with each other?" she couldn't help but voice her concern.

Melisara glanced back at her and sighed, "Seiras is a scholar like me and he's a delight to speak with. Monkeigh or not, he thinks like I do. I find more kinship with him than most of the commorrites I deal with on a regular basis. I would proudly call us friends."

"Friends?! Seriously?! Are you joking right now, Melisara?" Aelendriel said disbelievingly.

"Why would I joke about that? Do you think I'd give Seiras a tour of my lab if I didn't like him?" the haemonculus smirked.

Mokaela sent Seiras an inviting look, "Can we be _friends_ as well, Seiras?"

"Assuming you're being serious, I don't understand why you would want to be on good terms with me." he trailed off uncertainly.

Aelendriel remained silent as she watched Mokaela smile proudly. The older succubus spoke with seductive joy in her voice, "There's a lot you don't understand about Eldar females…at least not yet."

' _What in the warp is she talking about?!'_ he couldn't help but think as he looked away and tried to ignore the two succubi.

"Now this area is where I'll be keeping your armour and weapons. It's one of my four vaults in here. This one particular is where I keep most high-level Imperium trophies and the like. We might as well unequip you while you're here," Melisara continued speaking.

"Do what you must," Seiras replied blankly as Melisara guided him towards the vault.

"Place your weapons there, and my newly created system will do the rest," the haemonculus stated enthusiastically. Seiras did as commanded as he placed his two weapons in the vault. Several moments later, a series of mechanical instruments that put servitors to shame quickly and easily pulled off and unequipped his power armour in practically no time at all. He watched with disbelieving fascination as the advanced alien machinery placed it into the vault onto display before closing itself.

"I had no idea you had machines like this," Seiras noted.

Melisara gleefully boasted, "Ah yes, I reverse-engineered and upgraded an ancient human design with this. How do you like it? Conveniently quick and efficient isn't it?"

"Indeed it is," Seiras agreed.

' _Why didn't you use this to equip me then? Maybe she really was purposely taking her time to agitate those Incubi? There's honestly no telling with Melisara…'_ Seiras thought immediately afterward.

Aelendriel stared at Seiras briefly before asking a question, "Why are you so agreeable with your situation? You had your armour and weapons and you willingly let Melisara remove them? Why didn't you try to escape?"

"Escape where exactly? I have no way of escaping the webway," Seiras countered.

The succubus scoffed at him, "Obviously, but your kind or usually too stupid to realize that. I find it hard to believe that you've just accepted your enslavement here so easily."

"Nobody cares what you think," Seiras replied. His response caused Aelendriel to immediately sour into a nasty mood.

Before she could voice her displeasure, Melisara changed the subject. She pointed ahead with excitement, "Alright, now over here in this area is what I call the Fleshworks Chamber. This is where I make my grotesques, modify eldar into scourges, and perform other various body modification experiments. There are a few lobotomized grotesques here at the moment. These two came out rather poorly, so I'm recycling them for another batch. There are several ways to make them, but they're best created with a template body and forged over several months with sinew, hormones, metal, and flesh. It's a long process, but I take an unwilling subject and I inject them with a manner of unique concoctions that force them to grow and mutate. I'll then reshape and enhance them with various amounts of extra flesh and organs that I might want to add. Some are more cybernetic than others. Each one however is a unique work of art. Granted they're nowhere near as impressive as space marines. I would never dare compare one to a genetic masterpiece like yourself."

"I've always wondered what these things actually were," Seiras noted.

"Past the Fleshworks Chamber I have my ingredient storage vault. Your kind would probably call it an Apothecarium. This area is where I store all the ingredients for my experiments. It has anything you can imagine from the blood of all known species, semen samples, spinal fluid, poisons, biological agents, glass plague vials, dark matter pods, tears of children, and so on. I also used to keep my gene-seed stock in here before I traded it. Usually I'd store vatborn fetuses here too, but I haven't made a new batch of them in a while," Melisara smirked.

"Vatborn…disgusting," Aelendriel scoffed.

Seiras tilted his head back, "You keep tears of children? What possible use would that provide?"

"You'd be surprised how much people pay for it. The tears of Eldar children are the most expensive and the tears of human children the cheapest. I mix it with a variety of ingredients such as tortured souls, virgin menstrual blood, ground up Kroot hearts, and a long list of other reagents. The one I just gave Tahril also had a part of a Tau Ethereal's heart mixed in. The elixirs that I make out of these things are very effective at reversing soul decay. I'm a bit of a pioneer at creating Soul serums and elixirs. It's useful for those that don't have time to torture slaves all day. Vect enjoyed them a great deal since he was so busy all the time. He was also fond of sharing them with random human slaves while he told them stories. Though it wasn't exactly pleasant on their gastrointestinal systems," Melisara laughed.

"I'm wondering something Melisara…that slave girl that the archon keeps with her. The red-haired one…where did he get her?" Seiras changed the subject.

The haemonculus thought for a moment, "The pariah you mean? I believe he found her on a black ship centuries ago. She was with him before I came into Faelan's service, so I don't know all the details. Meela is a Sister of Silence however. I have her armour locked up in my main vault."

"Really? I've heard legends about them, but I've never actually seen one. That would explain a lot about her. I can't believe that thought never crossed my mind," Seiras remarked as if a revelation had just hit him.

"What are Sisters of Silence? Are they like Sisters of Battle? I've never heard of that faction." Mokaela interjected with curiosity.

Melisara glanced at her, "No, Sisters of Silence are far more powerful and deadly than Sororitas. They are an all-female order of genetically enhanced blanks and pariahs that the humans use to hunt down and apprehend psykers. They also used to guard the Emperor of Mankind along with his Adeptus Custodes. They're very dangerous and hard to kill. Most high-ranking ones are trained to be able to kill an average space marine and they are a nightmare for Eldar to fight. The sisters have advanced wargear as well. Meela herself is an Oblivion Knight from what I can discern. Her armour is prestigious, she's got the physique and enhancements for it, and she is closer to Eldar height than any female human I've ever seen. She's also very good at killing eldar. She's a perfect bodyguard for Faelan. That being said, Faelan has been more protective of her since her death and typically doesn't let her fight. He initially requested my services to resurrect Meela. I believe she is a full-blown pariah and not just a regular blank judging by how much she scares and repulses everyone around Faelan."

"How is he able to tolerate her presence?" Seiras asked confused, "regular nulls are already repulsive to your kind. Aren't pariahs the most powerful nulls? I hear they're unbearable to be around even for non-psychics."

"The latent psychic potential of the Drukhari Commorrites has long since atrophied over the millennia. We _'Dark Eldar'_ are far more tolerant of nulls than our craftworld cousins or the harlequins. With that being said, a pariah still evokes a strong feeling of discomfort from us. Faelan likely enjoys the unease Meela's presence brings to his underlings. The incubi are disciplined enough to stand her presence, but not many others are. Her company has negated three assassination attempts on him in the past century alone. She also shields him from psychic and daemonic power as you likely know. As for why Faelan seems to fancy her…I couldn't say. Faelan has secrets that even I'm unaware of." the haemonculus replied.

' _I wonder if Meela is actually loyal to Faelan? From what it sounds like, he treats her well. Is she just going along with this like me until she can escape? Ashera seemed to think that she wouldn't betray Faelan...though that could just be her own bias.'_ Seiras wondered briefly.

"So…she's a warrior? I had no idea…" Aelendriel trailed off disbelievingly.

"You should pay more attention. You've been around her more than I have," Melisara chuckled.

"Looking at her makes me uncomfortable…besides, I only ever see that slut in slave girl lingerie. I seriously don't understand how Faelan can even be in the same room as her...let alone allow the bitch to sit next to him all the time. She also smells horrible, and the room is always cold when she's there! Why is he attracted to that damn monster?!" the succubus countered.

"Perhaps breeding with her has given him some type of tolerance to her blank aura. Though, that's just a hypothesis of mine. I honestly don't know. Faelan didn't actually let me experiment on her body. He was present the entire time she was in the reanimation pod. He certainly values her more than anything else around here," the haemonculus replied.

"That would make sense if it's actually true…what I'm wondering is how Maeralya can tolerate her too. She and Faelan are the only ones that don't seem to hate that woman." Mokaela spoke darkly.

Melisara shrugged, "Well Maeralya is sometimes involved during their encounters, so that might add credence to my theory. Unfortunately, I have no way of proving it."

"What are Oblivion Knights exactly? I don't really know much about the Sisters of Silence." Seiras changed the subject immediately as he did not want to hear about Meela's sexual abuse at the hands of Faelan.

"Oblivion Knights are higher ranking elites in the Silent Sisterhood I believe. They usually have a red aquila tattooed on their foreheads which marks their position. Most silent sisters have shaved heads minus a warrior tail on top, which makes it easy to notice. Meela's tattoo is mostly covered by her bangs as her hair has grown in long over the years. You have to get close to really see it for what it is," Melisara answered.

"If she's a sister of silence, that would explain how she knows Astartes sign language," Seiras thought aloud.

' _Oh no…I didn't mean to say that with Mokaela and Aelendriel here,'_ he immediately caught his mistake.

Aelendriel perked up with curiosity as she immediately interjected, "Wait, those gestures she does with her hands…you can understand it?"

Seiras glanced over at Aelendriel and nodded, "Yes, I can."

"Faelan can too…although, I don't know how he learned it. The woman's a mute. So her hand gestures are some type of space marine sign language? Why would Faelan know it?" Aelendriel pointed out.

Melisara chuckled, "Maybe you should ask him, Aelendriel."

' _Actually, this works in my favor. It's good to know that Faelan can understand Astartes sign language. I shouldn't communicate anything suspicious with Meela in front of him then. I get the feeling he's way more powerful, intelligent, and dangerous than I'm giving him credit for. I should be very wary of Faelan,'_ Seiras made a mental reminder.

"I'd sooner take my chances asking Lord Vect why he and Lady Malys broke up," Aelendriel shot back.

' _Lady Malys…isn't she the Archon of the Poisoned Tongue Kabal? They said she was backing the Bladed Sun Kabal against Faelan. She used to be Vect's lover? How unusual...'_ the Blood Raven thought briefly.

"Now this area here is what I call the _Ecstasy Den_ ," Melisara continued the tour as she guided Seiras and the wyches into another room.

They all looked around curiously at it as Melisara pointed out various things, "In here is primarily where I distill Nightbliss Nectar and other various high-quality drugs. I also like to test them out on subjects as well. My personal chambers are actually right next to this area as well."

Seiras immediately felt uncomfortable when he heard 'Nightbliss Nectar' and 'personal chambers' used so closely together. This vault chamber looked more than a little suspicious judging by how comfortable it looked. Half of it looked like a high-tech drug den, and the other half looked like a noble's penthouse estate room combined with a sex dungeon. He knew that lingering here was not a good idea.

"Interesting," Seiras trailed off slowly as he glanced at Melisara, "so what about that assembly across the lab near your main vault?"

Melisara was quick to notice his discomfort and chuckled, "We'll get to that, Seiras…but since you're already here, I have to ask a favor of you."

"What is it?" he said slowly as unease began to rise.

Aelendriel looked more than a little concerned as well as Melisara pressed a button causing the room's chamber door to seal shut. Mokaela seemed to catch on what was coming next as she actually started smirking.

"I need biological samples from you to put it bluntly…a lot of them too," the haemonculus began with a sly grin.

"You couldn't get those while I was dead?" Seiras asked.

Melisara shook her head, "Oh no, I already got plenty of other samples from your gene-seed and your brain. I needed you alive for this part."

 **"Why did you close the door, Melisara?"** Aelendriel almost demanded.

"What kind of samples are you talking about?" Seiras pretended to be oblivious. Deep down however, he already knew. Melisara vaguely mentioned it earlier in her collection.

"Semen samples…I had planned on collecting them myself, although since Mokaela and Aelendriel were so eager to come along, I can have them help me with it," the haemonculus giggled with perversion.

Aelendriel's eyes shot open, "You want us to have sex with him?! I refuse!"

"What's that, Aelendriel? You don't want my services anymore?" Melisara taunted the succubus causing her to look even more horrified.

"Well, this is rather unexpected, but Seiras is cute though…I wouldn't mind taking his virginity." Mokaela began to giggle with malicious perversion at the idea. He found it horrifying that she was in approval of the situation.

"What the hell do you need semen samples for? He's a space marine! He can't even breed, Melisara!" Aelendriel tried to keep protesting.

Melisara gave Seiras a knowing grin as she licked her lips, "Should you tell them Seiras, or should I?"

"Tell us what, exactly?" Mokaela's eyes lit up eagerly.

The Astartes remained deathly silent as he refused to speak of what happened with Renfaeda. Melisara chuckled before turning her head towards Aelendriel and Mokaela, "Renfaeda proved that wrong not too long ago."

"You had sex with Renfaeda?! Why the hell would she let you defile her?!" Aelendriel said disbelievingly to Seiras.

"Oh wow, Renfaeda beat me to it! You're lucky though Seiras…she's really sexy. Although, I'll admit I'm a bit jealous now that I can't be your first," Mokaela added.

He remained silent as he tried to make peace with what was about to happen. There was no way he could refuse Melisara. She was his ticket out of Commorragh. _'Why would Melisara make me do this?! I guess I don't have a choice…'_

"How did you find out, Melisara?" Seiras finally broke his silence.

The haemonculus smirked at his question, "Nightbliss Nectar is a super high-quality drug. The only way anyone can get it around here is through me. When Renfaeda asked for some the other day, I already knew what she was going to use it for. I'm guessing her escort to your slave chamber had a bit of a _detour_ didn't it?"

"This is absurd! I am not even attracted to him! If Mokaela wants to sully herself with him then fine, but he couldn't satisfy me if his life depended on it! Just because Renfaeda or the others have a monkeigh fetish, doesn't mean I do!" Aelendriel said defiantly.

"Is that right? Let's have a little bet then, shall we? If he can't satisfy you then I'll give you unlimited access to biological upgrades and the best combat drugs I have for free. What do you say?" Melisara smirked.

"This ought to be interesting…" Mokaela smirked.

Aelendriel paused in silence as she looked at Melisara shocked. She seemed to be conflicted about the situation now as she looked away and spoke, "So if I have sex with him, you'll give me access to hyper adrenal combat stimulants and free upgrades?"

"Absolutely…but that's only if he can't satisfy you," the haemonculus replied.

' _Emperor help me…why is Melisara doing this?!'_ Seiras thought concerned.

"That would also apply to the payment I already owe you too, yes?" Aelendriel confirmed anxiously.

Melisara nodded, "Of course. Would you be willing to let her go first, Mokaela?"

"I suppose…though she better share!" Mokaela giggled.

The younger succubus ran a hand through her hair and sighed, "Well if it's that good of a deal, I guess it's worth letting this monkeigh embarrass himself. However, I'll only accept it on one more condition…nobody gets to know about this except for us. I don't want my reputation ruined any further than it already has been."

"I accept your terms, dear Aelendriel," Melisara smiled.

Aelendriel glanced over at Seiras and laughed at him, "Well I guess it's your lucky day, monkeigh…you get to clumsily attempt mating with me."

"This agreement has nothing of benefit to me, Melisara…I have no interest in this," Seiras said distastefully.

Aelendriel crossed her arms at him, "I still don't believe it myself, but a bet's a bet. Let's see what you got then, space marine. I can't wait to watch you fail miserably at your pathetic attempt to mate with me."

He watched confused as Aelendriel immediately began to strip her armour off. She was fully naked in a few seconds.

Seiras glanced at the enthusiastic Melisara before sighing heavily, "Alright then…"

Aelendriel looked noticeably curious as Seiras stripped himself. He wasn't erect yet, but the succubus seemed to be staring at his manhood with curiosity.

"You sure you can handle that, Aelendriel?" Mokaela teased her underling.

"You can't even get hard without Nightbliss Nectar. What a joke!" Aelendriel laughed.

"Don't mind her attitude, Seiras…Aelendriel isn't sexually experienced from what I've heard. She's probably nervous," Melisara chuckled.

The succubus looked embarrassed by that remark as she took a step closer, "That's a lie! I have a lot of sex! I'm not nervous at all!"

"Then why are you being so skittish? Make a move, Aelendriel. He's not going to be stimulated until you start pleasing him," Melisara replied.

Her pink eyes glanced at Seiras briefly before she hissed, "I shouldn't have to! He's the one who's too scared to make a move!"

' _I'm starting to think Aelendriel has a strange way of projecting her insecurities onto others. It's quite childish,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he took a step closer.

The succubus seemed a bit alarmed when she saw Seiras approach, but quickly regained her cocky demeanor as she stepped forward, "I doubt you can even get hard, but I'll be nice and suck your dick for you just to prove it!"

The situation quickly escalated into more blatant heresy as Aelendriel moved down and began to give him oral stimulation. She was definitely inexperienced at giving blowjobs as her motions almost reminded him of Jessenta. Just thinking about the sororita blowing him was enough to send a strong and warm blood flow into his manhood.

As he got harder, Mokaela pushed Aelendriel's head from behind forcing her to take in more, **"Deep throat that dick, Aelendriel."**

The younger succubus almost choked as she gagged briefly in a humming bob. Seiras would be lying if he said it didn't feel great. Aelendriel seemed proud of herself when she noticed him reacting to it and smacked her lips away as she looked up arrogantly, "Well, I guess I was wrong...you can get hard. So all those times you were staring at me...you were daydreaming about this happening huh? I knew you wanted me! I'll make you cum before this dick even penetrates me!"

With aggressive lust and promiscuous pride, the succubus continued on with her attempts to end this as fast as possible. Her mouth felt amazing and warm around his cock as she tried her hardest to force in as much as she could. Aelendriel seemed to be enjoying herself and was actually getting wet from causing him pleasure.

Seiras felt an increasing desire build up within him as Aelendriel sucked and licked with increasing pace. She then began to stroke with soft and forceful pressure using both hands as she deepthroated him. She vibrated the inside of her mouth and throat with a loud hum as well.

At this point, he actually wanted to fuck her now. Aelendriel nearly shrieked as Seiras pulled her head back a moment later. She looked up at him and laughed, "You were about to cum, weren't you? Pfft! Your cock tastes disgusting by the way. It's a wonder I haven't thrown up from this yet."

"Shut up, Eldar bitch," Seiras replied as he grabbed her by the throat and pushed her to the ground.

Aelendriel gasped as he got between her legs a moment later. She looked a bit hesitant and fearful as Seiras spread her legs apart. Despite her mental reservations about it, the succubus was dripping wet with bodily fluids from her nether regions. It had a strangely sweet aroma to it.

"You're looking awfully vulnerable there, Aelendriel," Mokaela cooed as she began to start playing with her own hair and caressing her thigh from the show.

"W-wait! I'm not ready yet! ARGH!" Aelendriel shrieked as Seiras disregarded her protests. He didn't really care much about anything at this point as he immediately entered her without any regard for her own comfort or not. Aelendriel screamed in a mixture of pleasure and pain as Seiras began to repeatedly penetrate her with slow and powerful thrusts.

She eventually got over her reservations about it as the experience began to invoke a bit more pleasure than she expected.

"Is that all you can do?! If you're going to fuck me, then do it right, you stupid monkeigh! This hurts!" she instigated between heavy breaths as she could barely control her own moaning. This continued on for a few minutes with random comments here and there about how terrible he was at it.

"By the way…who feels better, me or Renfaeda? What kind of question is that…of course I'm better aren't I?" Aelendriel asked as she aggressively squeezed her vaginal muscles around him with each thrust causing waves of pleasure. Seiras immediately started going faster now as the pressure built up.

"I can feel you trembling! You're almost done, and you haven't even come close to satisfying me! Any second now you're just going to explode." Aelendriel boasted.

"Lift her left leg up further Seiras and aim higher," Mokaela gave him unwanted advice.

Humoring her request, Seiras repositioned Aelendriel a bit as he began to go deeper and harder.

"OOOOH! Not there! NO! Don't go that fast!" Aelendriel couldn't help but squeal as a shudder went through both her and Seiras' bodies. He found a special spot within her inner walls that seemed to evoke a feeling of extreme euphoria as she began to contract and vibrate around his thrusting manhood.

"What's the matter, Aelendriel? Is it starting to feel really good?" Melisara teased her.

"He found the spot…hahahaha!" Mokaela laughed.

The proud succubus tried to resist the feeling but was soon lost to her own lust as she wrapped her legs around Seiras' waist, "You like that, don't you Seiras?! You're probably dying to cum inside of me, aren't you? Go ahead…Ahhhhh! Don't slow down! Rape me you damn monkeigh! Keep going right there! RIGHT THERE! AHHH ARRGHHH! It feels so good! OOOOOOH! MMMMMM!"

Seiras couldn't hold it back any longer as he let it all go and finally came. She hadn't stopped orgasming yet and couldn't stop now as the warm and sticky fluid lubricated her even further. The only things that could be heard in the chamber were her screams, Seiras' grunts, and the rapid slapping sound of sticky flesh colliding repeatedly.

Once their orgasms were finally over, Seiras pulled out of her. Aelendriel quickly caught her breath as she looked down at her semen-filled vagina. She seemed to immediately regain her clarity when she realized that she lost the agreement with Melisara.

The succubus sat up and felt her vagina almost angrily, "I came!? Fuck! You did too?! UGH! Gross…there's so much of it! Did this really just happen?"

"I'm afraid it did…" Melisara smirked as she moved over with some type of medical instrument and began to extract the bodily fluids from Aelendriel's vagina.

Aelendriel couldn't help but gasp from how sensitive the area was as Melisara held it open and began to suck out the bodily fluids with her tool.

"You're a lucky girl, Aelendriel. That looked like it felt amazing. I can't wait to go next," Mokaela said joyously.

Seiras looked down as he felt the familiar post sex shame once again. He couldn't help but wonder how this was going to affect things, _'I wonder what Renfaeda will think if she finds out about this?'_

Aelendriel let out an annoyed sigh before glancing at Seiras, "I can't believe I let you finish inside of me! Ughhh! Can you at least look grateful that I let you mate with me?! Don't even act like you didn't enjoy it! You like humiliating me…don't you? I'll bet that's why you got off on this, isn't it? Did you like defiling me? Do you like the idea of me being your bitch?!"

"Considering he beat you twice in a fight and sexually dominated you, I'd say you're technically his bitch now, Aelendriel," Melisara laughed.

The proud succubus rolled her eyes before glancing at Seiras, "Well isn't that just nice…now my humiliation in complete. I might as well be your damn girlfriend at this point. At least I could shove that in Kaerith's stupid face!"

"If that's what you want," Melisara teased.

"Hold up, Aelendriel…if that's the case, then you're going to have to share him with me," Mokaela said with her sultry voice. To Seiras' horror, she was already stripping naked too.

Aelendriel seemed annoyed as she stared at Seiras, "Are you going to acknowledge me or what?! Don't you dare ignore me!"

"Can we just move on now, Melisara?" Seiras asked the haemonculus as he tried to ignore Aelendriel and Mokaela.

"Not so fast, Seiras. I'm going to need a lot more semen than this. I'll need to fill up six of these containers. This is barely enough to fill up half of one," Melisara said as she examined her collected sample with a sly grin.

He shook his head, "Well I don't know how you intend on getting more out of me than that."

"By fucking you dry of course…" Melisara said with casual sultriness.

Seiras' doubts were removed a split second later when Melisara injected him with a large dosage of Nightbliss Nectar from one of her arms. She quickly did the same thing to Aelendriel, Mokaela, and then herself.

"You'll find I have my ways, Seiras. It's been a while since I've mated with anyone. I hope you don't mind, but I like to be on top," Melisara laughed wickedly as she pulled her clothes and armour off.

Stripping off the armor, weapons, and tools that she usually carried revealed that her two biomechanical arms were actually regular arms underneath their attachments. The spiny appendages attached to her back moved to each grab around one of Seiras' arms. The tail like one grabbed one of his legs holding Seiras completely in place.

He took this time to take in the haemonculus' appearance. Underneath her armoured robes, Melisara was wearing a bra and underwear made out of flesh. Seeing a fleur-de-lis on the bra, he immediately realized that it was probably the flesh of a former Sororita. It made sense considering how much Melisara disliked religious fanatics.

Slowly and seductively, Melisara stripped it all off and revealed her fully nude form. Despite her bizarre haemonculus physiology, Melisara looked mostly normal except for the extra arms and the spiny extensions. She had a beautifully aesthetic physique that rivaled a wyches, and there wasn't a single blemish or scar on her entire body. Her creepy doll like face was somewhat seductive and terrifying at the same time.

He could barely believe how curvaceous and appealing she looked to him when out of her clothes. Although, that could have just been a side-effect of the drugs. Melisara reached for Seiras' hand with two of her clawed ones and guided it to touch her exposed flesh.

It was softer than silk but still felt muscled and tough. The impossibility of having this type of skin truly enraptured his curiosity as he didn't resist feeling it over more. His hand slowly reached up towards her chest where her impractically large bust stuck outward defying gravity.

"You like these, don't you? I heard a lot of monkeigh have a fetish for large breasts, so I enhanced mine just for you, Seiras. I aim to please in any way I can. Feel free to touch all you want," the haemonculus said seductively.

The nightbliss nectar quickly did its work as the overwhelming sensation of the drug caused him to immediately enter a lustful state again. Melisara moved closer towards him and immediately began to lick his face. Her long alien tongue reminded him of a serpent's as it soon found its way towards his mouth.

As their mouths met, Seiras let Melisara playfully molest his tongue in a brief but ravenous kiss. Moments later, she pushed him to the ground and immediately mounted him. As she slid down on top of his erect manhood, Seiras gasped into a low scream from how good it felt. Her inner walls were drenched with bodily fluids and felt even softer than her skin if that was possible. Words couldn't describe how great she felt, and he immediately lost all sense of control as he wanted nothing more than to pump into her.

Melisara giggled in delight from his enthusiastic lust as she felt him buck from beneath her as fast as he could. She moaned in approval as she squeezed around him and began to quicken her pace.

"I'm going to need a lot of semen, so don't even think about holding back on me, Seiras. Indulge in this carnal delight...you deserve it," Melisara stated as she moaned.

"You totally just jumped ahead of me, Melisara! Start licking Seiras! I need stimulation right now!" Mokaela interrupted as she sat on his face. This forced him to attempt orally pleasing Mokaela as Melisara rode him. Both were making lustful sounds from the act and Mokaela was so wet, that he was practically drinking from her vagina now. It had a sweet alien taste to it that he had no comparison for.

This sexual depravity continued on for a while as Seiras aggressively went as fast and as hard as he could. Melisara was riding him wildly as she matched his thrusts with her own. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore as he completely filled her up with the sticky hot love juice.

"AHHH YES! That feels amazing! OOOOH!" Melisara cooed as she relaxed her breathing.

She got off of him afterwards and immediately went to filling up another container with the fresh semen now oozing from her crotch. Seiras couldn't even move for a moment as he felt his body still recovering from the indescribable sensation. The moment Melisara was off of him, Mokaela seized her chance to straddle him as he attempted to sit up. He watched with curiosity as Melisara set aside the two now filled containers. She spoke approvingly, "Hopefully I don't get pregnant from his, hahaha!"

Seiras felt a bizarre and spine-tingling concern as he tried to briefly figure out what Melisara wanted his sperm for. He didn't get much time to think about it as Mokaela lustfully began to make out with him.

Thanks to the Nightbliss Nectar, he immediately got hard again as Mokaela caressed her muscled soft body against his own. She slid down over his manhood and gasped in ecstasy as her body was fully ready for it. The succubus began to grind with acrobatic precision as she went full speed immediately.

"I don't think daddy would like this, but what daddy doesn't know, won't hurt him," Mokaela said with a slutty giggle.

While neither succubus felt as good as Melisara did, Seiras couldn't contain his overwhelming drug-filled lust to ravage them as he flipped her around onto her hands and knees.

He pulled Mokaela by the hair as he began to repeat the same position, he used on Sorellia recently. Mokaela didn't even try to hold back her shameless moans as she was drilled from behind.

"Oh, pull my hair! Yes! You know what I like! You know what I want!" Aelendriel moaned as she spread her legs acrobatically wider.

He continued ravaging her from behind at an increased pace which caused the succubus no small amount of sickening joy. "Seiras! Seiras! UGHHHHH AHHHH! Give it to me! I want more!" Mokaela was now calling his name out.

He didn't know how or why, but something about the pathetically feminine way she would cry his name made him enjoy this a lot more than he should have.

"AHHHH!" Mokaela screamed into her climax before slumping over in front of Seiras with a whorish expression. She had rolled-up eyes, a stuck-out tongue, and a completely flushed face. She laughed to herself as she moaned proudly, "That might be the best I've ever had."

"The Nightbliss nectar quadruples pleasure sensitivities in your nerve cells. You might have trouble walking for a few minutes after each session," Melisara interjected as she harvested the fluids from Mokaela as well.

"Let's get high! Do you have any other drugs, Melisara?" Mokaela asked eagerly as she managed to turn around and crawl over on top of Seiras. He almost wanted to cringe when he felt the succubus nuzzle up against him and lick the sweat from his body.

Mokaela's tender moment was cut short when Aelendriel began to start sucking Seiras off again.

' _What the hell?! Again?! I don't know how much of this my body can take.'_ he thought disbelievingly.

"Looks like Aelendriel wants some more," Mokaela giggled as she began to start kissing Seiras again while the other succubus sucked him off.

Unfortunately, the lust returned to Seiras as he got erect once again. At this point it was starting to get painful, but there was nothing he could do to stop it now.

Aelendriel stopped sucking after a while and quickly taunted him, "I want you to rape me! Make me your bitch, Seiras!"

Mokaela moved aside and grabbed Aelendriel's arms from behind and wrapped her legs around the other succubus forcing her legs wide. "I'll hold her for you. Rape her, Seiras!" Mokaela said approvingly.

"Imagine what your fans would say if they could see you now. The great Aelendriel Raya begging for a monkeigh to rape her," Melisara delighted in the irony.

Aelendriel wasn't in her right mind to respond as she cried out and moaned pathetically. In some sick, twisted way, she got extreme sexual gratification from being dominated like this.

"Do you like it, Aelendriel? Does it feel good to be taken?" Melisara teased.

"Yes! Don't stop! It feels so good!" Aelendriel said incoherently between moans.

"You like being Seiras' whore?" Melisara asked. Aelendriel couldn't even answer as she shrieked from ecstasy and sinful pleasure.

"I'm your bitch!" she cried out.

 **Many Hours Later**

Seiras awoke an indeterminate amount of time later and found himself collapsed on some type of comfortable looking bed. He quickly tried to remember what happened before passing out earlier. The last thing he remembered was having sex with Aelendriel, Melisara, and Mokaela and doing a lot of drugs.

He glanced around for the three individuals in question and was shocked to see Aelendriel and Mokaela both passed out right next to him. Aelendriel looked like she had been thoroughly abused as a number of bruises covered her entire body. She was completely naked still and had a vacantly peaceful face as she slept.

Her nether regions looked a bit bruised, swollen, and shiny. He soon realized it was still sticky as well as the succubus moaned in her sleep and wrapped her legs around one of his. Mokaela on the other hand looked happy in her sleep. All four of her limbs were coiled around Seiras' left arm and leg.

' _I really went all out with them, didn't I? Emperor forgive me for this disgusting shame. I wonder where Melisara is though?'_ Seiras pondered as he didn't spot her in the entire Ecstasy Den.

He tried to get off the bed a moment later but was annoyed to realize that both succubi were tightly clenched onto him. His attempt to get free unfortunately woke them both. Aelendriel groaned in irritation for a moment as she regained her awakening clarity. Mokaela yawned before nuzzling against his arm. Her red eyes opened and stared at him curiously as she refused to let go.

The succubi both gawked at him in silence as they looked between their naked forms and the bed that they were all on. Aelendriel must have finally remembered the events prior to their loss of consciousness as she sent him a cautious look. Mokaela was actually smiling proudly when she spoke up, "That was so much fun."

Seiras ignored them as he finally pushed the wyches off and got up. To his relief, he spotted his undergarments and put them on again. Aelendriel silently stared at him and didn't move from her spot as she watched him like a hawk.

Looking around for Melisara again, Seiras called out to the haemonculus, "Melisara?! Where are you?"

"Will you please stop ignoring us." Aelendriel spoke up. The librarian turned his gaze towards the succubi as they stared at him from the bed. Aelendriel was upright now and was sitting on it with her legs a bit wider than he liked.

She noticed his uncomfortable gaze from her spread-eagle stance and chuckled, "What's the matter? Don't like looking at my birth canal? You certainly enjoyed abusing it earlier."

"I didn't have a choice…and neither did you, apparently. Let's just pretend this never happened, alright? I will never speak of it again if you don't." Seiras sighed.

"Oh really? You don't want me to be your girl? You made me your bitch, Seiras. Twice in battle, and…multiple times in the bedroom. Whether you like it or not, you courted me in the most appealing way possible to a wych. Initially the thought of mating with you disgusted me, but I'll admit…you satisfied me." Aelendriel smirked.

"It was the drug that made me act that way. I can't remember any of it," he lied.

Aelendriel caressed one of her breasts as she grinned, "You like me more than Renfaeda, don't you? Renfaeda likes to dominate others, but me…I like being the submissive one in my relationships. That's why I'm so attracted to Faelan. He could take me in a heartbeat if he wanted to. But you…you took me too. You liked dominating me, didn't you? I guess that makes me your bitch…doesn't it?"

"Does that mean you're going to start calling me master?" Seiras asked sarcastically.

The succubus laughed heartily at his question, "Oh dear no! That's cute you would even ask something so foolish. I'll admit I never liked the idea of mating with a monkeigh before...but you've changed my mind about the whole thing. So, I suppose I could be your secret girlfriend if you want. What do you say?"

"Forget secret girlfriend, I'd proudly flaunt Seiras in front of the whole wych cult. You better get used to the idea of sharing him, Aelendriel," Mokaela spoke up.

"If it were anyone else, I'd tell them off, but I'll share with you, Mokaela…only you though," Aelendriel smirked.

"What?! This is absurd! What would the others say?! What would Renfaeda say about you two being my…girlfriends?!" he immediately retorted with evident disapproval. He said the last word with quiet shame as if even speaking it aloud could breathe life into the horrendous idea.

"We should definitely keep this a secret, Mokaela. At least until I know where Renfaeda stands on the matter. Plus…the idea of fucking him behind Renfaeda's back is too delicious for me to pass up. You're ours now, Seiras." Aelendriel beamed.

Mokaela giggled in approval, "Ooooh…a secret affair! Well I'm all for that then."

' _What have you done, Melisara?! Why would she…wait a minute. Was she hoping to set the succubi against each other by making them fight over me? Surely, they wouldn't stoop to something that petty, would they? Maybe I'm just overreacting still, but I have no idea how Renfaeda would take this...or even Nelfaera.'_ Seiras thought to himself.

Thankfully, Melisara had finally arrived as she opened the vault door. She came levitating in and was wearing some type of casual nightgown if one could even call it that. The haemonculus smiled with creepy warmness at Seiras, "Ah, you're finally awake? Good! I greatly appreciate all the biological samples you provided for me. I even got more than I needed. I also appreciate you two helping me in this scientific endeavor."

"Why do you want my sperm, Melisara?" Seiras couldn't help but ask.

She chuckled at his question, "That's a secret dear boy…and it doesn't really concern you to be honest. By the way…how are you feeling right now? Do you remember what happened?"

"No…which is strange," he said slowly.

"Strange indeed considering you have perfect memory. Allow me to remind you. We all had multiple turns with you and then we started taking a bunch of extra drugs. They both passed out before you, and I finished you off about 8 or 9 hours ago," Melisara elaborated.

"Well…thanks I guess," he didn't know what else to say.

"Anytime…" she winked at him.

Mokaela's eyes lit up during the following pause, **"Oh wait! There was a troupe play later! Daddy is visiting, I can't miss it!"**

" **Don't you worry, my dear…it's not for another few hours. You'll have time to make it,"** Melisara calmed her down.

Mokaela glanced at Seiras with amusement, "Hey, Seiras…want to come watch the harlequins' performance? There is a show tonight."

"Not really…" he said slowly.

"C'mon Aelendriel! We have to go get ready! Plus, it'll look suspicious if anyone sees us here. We'll come back and get you later Seiras!" Mokaela jumped up as she began to get dressed and reequipped. Aelendriel quickly did the same.

Seiras remained still and silent as he watched the two succubi hustle towards the exit shortly afterward which Melisara had conveniently opened for them. Once they were gone, Melisara looked back at Seiras and laughed, "You played your part well, Seiras."

"What are you talking about? Why did you make me have sex with them and you?" he asked the haemonculus with annoyance.

Melisara levitated over towards Seiras as she caressed his face with one of her hands, "Dear boy…collecting your seed wasn't the only reason for this. I had hoped to plant one with them. It turned out better than expected."

"You want them to be my… _girlfriends_?" he said the last part with a quiet and hesitant pause.

The haemonculus nodded, "Absolutely! It will create strife between the wyches if you can make them fight each other over you."

"That's ridiculous! I had my suspicions that was your plan, but how is that beneficial in anyway whatsoever? Do you honestly think they're going to fight over me?!" he demanded.

"Mokaela already had the hots for you, and Aelendriel was plotting her own lackluster revenge most likely. They were going to mess with you regardless…at least now you have them on your side." Melisara explained.

He shook his head, "Well that's just great…"

"I would also recommend that you attempt to seduce Nelfaera if you can. As I'm sure you might have learned by now, Aelendriel and Nelfaera hate each other. If you get her involved, they'll all scheme against each other instead of you. That frees us up to work on our _other_ project," Melisara explained.

The librarian sighed, "Fine…I'll attempt to befriend her then."

"I'm glad we finally got to mate with each other as well. At least now there won't be any unbearable sexual tension between us. I'm certain you'll be getting plenty of offers for a while, but I'd definitely like to do it again before you leave Commorragh. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention. I made some clothes for you to wear. Seeing as how you're moving up in the world around here, I figured you could use some," Melisara smiled seductively.

Seiras was actually surprised when Melisara had a floating table come in with clothes on it. He looked at them curiously. They weren't exactly his first choice for what to wear, but he couldn't be picky. The outfit was blue, white, and black in the colours of the Kabal and was made out of an unknown fabric. It consisted of pants and a long sleeve shirt by the looks of it, and came with a pair of spiked shoes that looked sized to fit his feet.

"Well...at least I won't have to walk around half-naked anymore," he replied as he put the outfit on. It was tighter than he liked, but was thankful to be somewhat dressed. He found the boots to be especially comfortable as he stared at them.

"You like those boots? I made them out of Tyranid hide," the haemonculus added.

"Well thanks for the clothes, Melisara. So now what happens now?" he wondered.

"Now, I have necrodermis to work with in order to restore Ferrus Manus' Iron Hands. I'll have my wracks escort you back to the slave chamber for the time being," Melisara replied.

Seiras stared at her briefly before shaking his head, "What's this about harlequins coming here? There's a performance or something?"

"Ah yes…they're coming to reenact the Fall for the nobility. Mokaela's father is one of the troupe masters for the troupe that is performing. He's the actor that plays Khaine in the performance, so you'll likely be able to notice him. I have no doubts that Mokaela will try to introduce you to him. Listen to me very carefully, Seiras…the shadowseer will try to peer into your mind and read your future. The psionic collar will protect you partially, but not entirely. You must shield yourself and your aura with mental occupation. When you talk to them, think about mundane chores or a repetitive task. Replay it over in your head and count over these thoughts. Do math in your head…calibrate an engine…read a book. Do you understand what I'm telling you?" Melisara spoke up seriously.

The librarian nodded his head at her, "I understand what you're telling me. As a psyker I'm used to doing it all the time."

"That is good to hear then. Remember, just because the collar around your neck nullifies your psychic aura, doesn't mean that a more powerful psyker can't read your mind or peer into your future. Do not trust these harlequins under any circumstance and be extremely wary of the shadowseer in particular. Treat her with all the precautions you would a powerful craftworld farseer," Melisara explained.

"You're not going to the play, Melisara?" he asked.

The haemonculus scoffed, "Pfft...I saw the Fall. I don't need some prissy little jesters dancing around and telling me a story about something I have far more knowledge on than they do!"

"That makes sense. Do you think it's possible they already know who I am or what I plan to do?" he changed the subject.

Melisara sighed, "It's honestly impossible to know for sure. They could be here to investigate you…although the play is on the 10th annual cycle tonight. It could very well be my own paranoia, but that would make for a convenient arrival just in time to stop a future _disaster_ here. It's also a perfect cover for an investigation. Regardless of all that, just be careful around the harlequins."

"As you say, Melisara," he nodded.

"Go now…I have work to do. Ask one of my wracks to take you back to the slave chamber," she waved him away.

Seiras nodded before walking towards the vault door exit. As he nearly left, he heard Melisara speak up again, "There is a way you can scare the harlequins away from you…though I don't recommend doing it if you don't have to."

"What's that?" he asked as he stopped to turn back.

"If you interact with the Solitaire, they'll avoid you like a plague. It's not the most ideal plan, but it would work. I'll trust your judgement, but you'll be trading one problem for another if you choose to do that," Melisara warned.

The Blood Raven shook his head in confusion, "The solitaire? Why would they avoid me for talking to one of those?"

"It's a superstitious thing among Eldar. They believe anyone who interacts with a Solitaire outside of a play gets tainted by their curse. It's some type of ancient ill omen. Regardless of all that nonsense, Solitaires are extremely dangerous and they have no regard to politics…it might kill you to try to interact with it," the haemonculus elaborated further.

"I'll keep that in mind then. See you later, Melisara…" he waved before departed.

"Farewell, dear Seiras," she responded.

 **Commorragh Walkway, Later**

As Seiras crossed the massive walkway from Melisara's lab along with a pair of wracks, he was deeply contemplative of what had happened today and what the arrival of harlequins would cause.

The wracks escorting him seemed somewhat cautious of Seiras freely walking behind them but were likely more trusting of him now than they had been previously. The arrival towards the slave chamber was cut short and intercepted near the entrance by Renfaeda of all people.

The succubus queen had both Mokaela and Aelendriel with her as well as a great number of her higher ranking wyches.

"Ah Seiras, there you are! I was looking for you in the slave chamber, but I guess you were still with Melisara. What were doing there for so long?" Renfaeda asked him curiously.

Through his peripheral vision he could see Mokaela and Aelendriel stealthily trading cautious looks. No doubt they were wondering whether Seiras would tell her the truth or not.

The librarian of course didn't tell the truth, "Melisara wanted to give me a tour of her lab. She also insisted on performing some experiments on me. Pain-thresholds and drug responses…things like that."

"I see…it would appear she also made some clothes for you to wear. How nice. Faelan will love that outfit." Renfaeda replied as she looked at the clothes he was now wearing.

He honestly couldn't tell if Renfaeda believed his lie or not, but it had thankfully dissolved any inquisitorial probing. Seeing Aelendriel and Mokaela both with several obvious bruises, he wondered if anyone suspected anything.

"What are you looking at, Monkeigh?!" Aelendriel hissed.

"I was just wondering what happened to your neck," he asked. Aelendriel and Mokaela both immediately picked up on Seiras trying to cover for them and joined in on it.

Mokaela shook her head, "We were sparring earlier. I was a little rough with her, but Aelendriel has been training harder since you defeated us."

"I see…" he replied passively.

"Hmph…it's so strange seeing all of you alive together again. I expected more hostility to be honest," Renfaeda chuckled to herself.

Aelendriel and Mokaela both began to say various things to Renfaeda in order to further reinforce their lie. Seiras tuned them out as he glanced over at Nelfaera. The Syren hadn't spoken a single word the entire time. She had apparently been looking at him but averted her gaze immediately as they made eye contact.

Her usual sultry pride and arrogant smirk was replaced with a broken and somewhat fearful expression. Part of him enjoyed seeing Nelfaera humbled like this, but he found it odd how depressed she was...especially in comparison to Aelendriel or Mokaela. Kaerith was obviously delighting in Nelfaera's depression as she winked at Seiras with a proud smile on her face.

"So why were you looking for me, Lady Renfaeda?" Seiras asked the succubus queen before any more awkward interactions could occur.

"Faelan wanted to speak with you again, and asked me if I would bring you by. There is also a harlequin performance tonight, that we were all going to attend. Mokaela suggested why not bring you along as well." Renfaeda answered.

"I have no interest in watching harlequins dance around and speak in a language I don't understand. Is there any way you can just come back for me later?" he asked.

"Nice try! I didn't walk all the way down here just for you to tell me no…that's not how this works, slave. You should feel honoured, Seiras. You even get to sit in the private pavilion next to Mokaela and me," Renfaeda replied.

"As you command, Lady Renfaeda…" Seiras got the conversation back on track.

Renfaeda smiled proudly at him, "I'm very pleased to see how well you've adjusted to all of this. Let us not delay any further. I don't want to be late for the play."

' _Emperor curse my luck…we're probably going to be sitting on the front row too,'_ Seiras groaned mentally.

 **Theater Dome Arena, Commorragh**

After an awkward trip to their destination, Seiras was curious to find that it was in a dome next to the wych cult arena. It was a massive amphitheater that had about ten thousands seats. Judging by how immaculate and pristine this particular part of the dome looked, he assumed it was only for the nobility. The lack of seating and the high concentration of trueborn completely solidified this theory.

To Seiras' relief, he and his "masters" weren't sitting directly on the front row. Instead they were all on some type of private pavilion that was sectioned above the other seats. It was decently close to the front, but not too close. They were roughly one hundred meters from the stage. To Seiras' fascination, the pavilion could move, and Faelan purposely moved it further away so that Meela's null presence wouldn't disrupt the show.

In their private area, he was seated next to Renfaeda on one side and Mokaela on the other. Aelendriel sat next to Mokaela with a number of other high ranking wyches right of her. To Renfaeda's left sat Faelan, Maeralya, and Nelfaera. All of Faelan's incubi were literally standing behind them and a number of Maeralya's slaves sat in front of their master. Meela herself was of course at Faelan's feet.

Seiras could see some of Maeralya's slaves trying to scoot away from the red-haired woman with subtlety. To his interest, Maeralya told Sylea to sit at his feet.

The brown haired Sororita was careful not to draw his attention or that of the wyches present, but Seiras could feel the Sororita leaning against his leg. She likely felt more comfortable being near him.

 **"I can't wait for the show! I haven't seen the Fall in a while."** Mokaela said with excitement.

Before anyone could respond to her, the lights dimmed as Eldar harlequins appeared on the stage. Several of the trueborn cheered for their opening act. Seiras watched with intensity as the masked eldar danced around the stage in ghostly acrobatic displays.

The one standing at a podium display began to narrate as the harlequins dispersed into various places, **"Every Aeldari knows of the Fall…the fall from grace. The fall from divinity. The fall from our own supremacy. Aeons ago in a time almost forgotten, the Aeldari Empire stretched across the galaxy. It was a testament to the greatness of our race and has never again been matched since its destruction. It stood eternally in the days of old. Infinite in power, and unmatched in potential. Our ancestors were once masters of the universe."**

The Eldar narrating was using psychic powers to create an illusion that went along with the play. The various harlequins roleplayed ancient Eldar as the illusion around them showed a beautiful society with impossibly amazing visuals.

" **But how did such a a mighty empire fall? That is the tale we have come to tell, and the tale that all Aeldari should hear.** **The Fall was inevitable near the end of the Aeldari Empire. It came not through war, disaster, or disease. No…we destroyed ourselves."** The narrator continued.

The various Harlequins reenacted depraving actions like actors in a play showcasing the narration. The magical illusion spells added an immersive visual enhancement along with the troupe acting it out. Looking closer at the psychic eldar narrating the play, Seiras saw that she had a reflective mask on as well as a hood.

' _She must be the shadowseer,'_ Seiras made a mental note.

" **Our idle supremacy before the fall had created a post scarcity empire of unlimited potential and a life of immortal ease. This eventually gave birth to complacency, depravity, and excessive indulgence. In a psychic echo that would forever scar the galaxy, the Chaos God Slaanesh was born. She-Who-Thirsts sprang forth into the materium taking shape from all the excess and evil that had corrupted the Aeldari. A being of beauty and terror…she rose out of the warp in the newly formed Eye of Terror and in a gluttonous frenzy began to consume the souls of all the Aeldari she could,"** the shadowseer continued narrating.

Seiras watched curiously as another Eldar joined the stage in a terrifyingly flashy appearance. The shadowseer didn't even seem to cast any illusions to add to the effect as this new arrival apparently did it herself. Seiras could tell it was a female judging by the skintight domino holo-suit, but she wasn't like the other harlequins. This one was wearing a horrendously shaped horned mask and brought him great unease by her presence. In a way she reminded him of the unease he felt around Meela. He quickly realized why as he thought about his previous conversation with Ashera in the slave chamber.

' _That one's a Solitaire…only Solitaires can play Slaanesh,'_ Seiras thought as he stared intensely at the solitaire.

The solitaire's bizarre psychic powers caused a shrieking echo throughout the crowd causing many in the audience to gasp or scream. Seiras couldn't help but notice how appalled and uncomfortable all of the dark eldar in the crowd looked from the solitaire as she gracefully and lethally danced around projecting horrendous images of souls being devoured.

" **All of the gods tried to intervene, but none could match the might of this newborn chaos god. One by one they all fell before the power of She-Who-Thirsts. Asuryan the great Phoenix King and Lord of the Heavens was consumed first by Slaanesh. She knew the dangers he posed and sought to remove the leader of the pantheon immediately. Her next meal was Morai-Heg…the great crone goddess and consort of Khaine. Vaul was next, and then Lileath, and then Kurnous. Soon the only gods that remained were Cegorach, Isha, and Khaine. The laughing god fled into the webway avoiding Slaanesh's pursuit, and then the mighty war god, Kaela Mensha Khaine drew Widowmaker and faced down the evil Slaanesh with his full might,"** the seer narrated further.

Seiras found this fascinating to watch as the magical display that went along with the harlequins acting made it even more enjoyable. One of the troupe masters down in the play was now playing the part of Khaine as he got into a blade fight with the solitaire. They both had giant illusional projections of their particular aspects take up most of the stage as the two fought.

 **"Is that what She-who-thirsts looks like?!"** Maeralya screeched fearfully at the performance.

To Seiras' curiosity, he didn't see some horrible monster fighting Khaine like the dark eldar did. He saw an Eldar with white hair. Her face was obscured in the same mask the solitaire was wearing, but the eyes were glowing pinkish purple through them.

Seiras stared intensely at the illusion of Slaanesh and almost found it beautiful. His interest in it almost caused him to fall into a trance. Nobody else seemed to notice his reaction except for Mairan. The incubus quickly poked him with a demiklaive from behind drawing him back to his proper mind. He felt a light amount of blood run down his back, but was thankful to regain his senses. He didn't have time to look back at Mairan as the audience gasped in horror at the battle between 'Slaanesh' and 'Khaine'.

The seer's narration continued, **"Khaine fought with all the might and hatred of the Aeldari, but even the mighty war god could not best Slaanesh after she had consumed the souls of many of his fellow gods. Before she could consume Khaine, the Chaos God Khorne intervened and sought to claim the war god for himself. An eternal champion…a trophy."**

Following her words, a massive illusion of a horned daemon intercepted the solitaire and reenacted a godly clash with the Slaanesh illusion.

" **The two ruinous powers fought one another for the soul of Khaine, but in their battle, they ripped Khaine into pieces and the god's soul would not be claimed by either one that day. After a humbling draw, Slaanesh would eventually drive off Khorne as the Blood God had no interest in what remained of Khaine. This left only Isha…goddess of fertility, love, life, and healing. As Slaanesh moved to claim her final prize, Isha cried out in terror for anyone to save her from the fate of the other gods. Her desperate cry was answered…but not by one she expected. The Chaos God Nurgle, Lord of Decay would also challenge Slaanesh that day. Where Khorne failed to take Khaine, Nurgle did not fail to rescue the mother of the Aeldari. He would seize Isha from Slaanesh and make her his wife,"** the shadowseer kept going.

' _This is all pretty messed up, but it explains a lot. So the Avatars of Khaine are shards of Khaine that came from Slaanesh and Khorne fighting for him? And what about Isha? Nurgle took her?'_ Seiras wondered.

He had learned some bits about the gods from Kalyra, but never anything this extensive. He kept his attention focused on the play as the solitaire was beaten back by an illusion of Nurgle.

" **Isha was saved that day from the fate of the other gods but would forever more be condemned into the plague gardens of Nurgle. There she sits still…eternally subjected to Nurgle's plagues as her immortal healing powers cure all blights and heal all wounds. She is the antithesis to Nurgle's Decay, and he keeps her there…as an eternal prize used to test his newest and most horrible blights,"** the seer elaborated.

' _So Isha is technically still alive in Nurgle's realm? I wonder…if she could heal anything, could she heal the Emperor?'_ Seiras couldn't help but wonder.

" **For a time, Slaanesh would gorge herself on the souls of most of the Aeldari Empire. Eventually however, she would forge anew her own realm of Chaos. Angered by Khorne and Nurgle's meddling, she would war with them for many millennia. But that…is a story for another day,"** The shadowseer paused briefly.

" **In the wake of her birth, the Aeldari race was now on the brink of collapse and extinction. All that remained were the disciplined Asuryani exiles that fled aboard their craftworlds; the savage Exodites who survive primitively; the nobles and pirates of Commorragh shielded within the webway; and of course, the servants of Cegorach that fled with their master. Long have they been divided…but though they diverged, all should remember the story of the Fall and of our greater racial identity. I encourage you my kin to not despair or languish in these grim times. Remain proud and strong for one day the Aeldari shall rise anew. Like the Phoenix King Asuryan, our greatness will be reborn from the ashes of the old empire. Like the mother Isha, our life and prosperity shall bloom with her love binding us together once again. Like the hunter Kurnous we shall tread a path back to glory and find our way through the darkness. Like the maiden Lileath, our dreams shall come to fruition as new generations are born into a galaxy of prosperous hope. Like the smith Vaul, we shall reforge our empire and craft weapons to never again be rivaled. Like the crone Morai-Heg, we shall weave our own fates and know the truth of our own divinity. Like the mighty war god Khaine, we shall crush and burn our enemies with long overdue vengeance. And in the end, the laughter of Cegorach shall echo across the heavens for all to hear as the Aeldari get the last laugh in the end…"** the seer concluded before darkness consumed the stage.

Many among the audience began to cheer, clap, and whistle in approval at the play much to Seiras' confusion. He found it odd that the Dark Eldar were in favor of such an idea, but quickly figured even they liked the small measure of hope that came at the end of such a dreary story. It made more sense to him now why even dark eldar liked harlequins.

The shadowseer cast a beautiful illumination of light as all the harlequins stood in a line and bowed to the audience. Seiras stared at the solitaire, who was standing a noticeable distance away from the others at the end. His intense staring had finally caught the solitaire's attention as her masked face glanced in his direction. He was shocked that she noticed his staring.

Something about the mask and the eerie absence of her face caused Seiras to feel a shiver run down his spine. Time almost seemed to slow down as a strange type of tunnel vision filled Seiras' vision. The locked stares between him and the solitaire had created an almost pinkish and gloomy aura in his peripheral vision. He couldn't tell if she was psychically affecting him but had a feeling that she was.

His vision returned to normal a second later as Mokaela waved a hand in front of his face, "Hey, what are you doing? Who are you staring at?"

Seiras snapped back to reality somewhat relieved when he saw Mokaela standing in front of him with confused eyes. She briefly tried to look down and see what he was looking at, but the solitaire was now gone. The rest of the harlequins all departed shortly afterward to the backstage of their little performing area.

' _Sing for her and she'll dance with you…'_ he heard Iruna's words in his head as he pondered on whether or not it was a good idea to approach the solitaire.

"That was enjoyable! C'mon Seiras, I want you to meet, daddy. I'll bring him right back, Renfaeda," Mokaela spoke to the others as she tried to pull Seiras out of his seat.

' _On second thought…I'd rather stay here,'_ he groaned mentally. He had no clue why Mokaela would want him to meet her father but couldn't really object as the succubus gestured for him to follow her. The others offered various jokes to the succubus for taking Seiras to meet her father, but the librarian ignored it all. He was in his own world right now.

Something about the solitaire had genuinely messed with him. He briefly glanced back at Mairan who was still standing behind Renfaeda and Faelan, _'Mairan broke that trance I was in…what the hell was that? Is going near that solitaire really a good idea?'_

"How did you like the play?" Mokaela asked him curiously as the two walked down the steps of the amphitheater. They caught quite a few bewildered stares, as they had both been killed in the arena recently. Seiras paid them no mind, and Mokaela seemed equally as unconcerned about people staring.

"I couldn't really understand what they were saying, but the visuals were interesting," Seiras lied.

Mokaela chuckled, "Oh forgive me…I should have translated it for you. It was about the Fall. My father was one who played Khaine in the play. I'll tell you the story later if you want."

"If you insist on it…" he trailed off unenthusiastically.

After the audience began to disperse a bit, Seiras reluctantly followed Mokaela backstage. Several harlequins turned their heads towards him alertly, as Seiras walked behind the succubus. No doubt they knew who she was, but they were extremely wary of his arrival.

 _'Alright…focus on land raider calibration. I need to shield my mind,'_ Seiras thought to himself as he began to occupy his mind with intensely mundane things.

As the two passed backstage, the harlequins watching the door turned to follow them. After walking through a winding path for about a minute or so, Seiras found himself and Mokaela in front of the obvious troupe leaders. Nobody spoke a word for a moment until Mokaela ran up and hugged her father, **"It's been forever, daddy! I missed you!"**

Seiras remained deathly silent as he kept his mind occupied and sharp.

" **Forgive my distance…it is distracting to be here around you. It reminds me too much of your mother. It is good to see you again, Mokaela. I take it your hobbies here have paid off. You were promoted to succubus last I heard, yes?"** he asked her.

She smiled eagerly, **"Of course! Would you expect any less of me? Your troupe did an amazing job in the play."**

" **I'm wondering something, daughter…why is there a space marine here with you?"** Mokaela's father asked as his masked head glanced behind her towards the stoic librarian. The harlequins seemed greatly interested in Seiras' presence and were no doubt confused by the Kabal colours on his clothes.

The shadowseer walked up to his side and spoke cryptically, **"A lost raven caged within Commorragh…strange, I sense very little from him."**

Seiras momentarily felt relief when he heard those words as it meant the harlequins weren't aware of his future plan. He felt unease shortly afterward when he realized that the shadowseer called him a 'lost raven.' Nevertheless, he shielded his mind and repressed his aura as much as he could while counting in his head.

" **A space marine slave is rather rare. He's not even restrained. How odd…"** Mokaela's father noted.

" **A librarian as well…he wears the psionic limiter collar. That might explain why I can't sense anything from him,"** the shadowseer added.

" **This is Seiras…he actually beat me in an arena duel. We're on good terms now though. Both of us ended up dying. He killed me and then Renfaeda killed him. The Immortal Revenant Melisara resurrected all of us. Faelan decided to recruit Seiras to serve the Kabal afterward and he's been cooperative ever since,"** Mokaela explained to the harlequins.

Their heads all noticeably focused on Seiras now and he could feel a slight amount of killing intent coming from some of them. Mokaela's father seemed serious as he looked at Seiras and spoke in gothic, "So…Archon Faelan has recruited you into his service, has he?"

"Obviously," Seiras said simply.

"You have an aura about you…space marine. Even through that collar, I can see the brightness of your soul. You shine brightly, and yet I see nothing of your future. How curious," the shadowseer said in gothic as she got closer. Seiras made sure not to look at her reflective mask as he pretended to be more interested in Mokaela's father.

Seiras did not respond or react to her comment as he kept his mind shielded. The shadowseer circled him briefly before walking away.

" **Is this space marine your slave, Mokaela?"** her father asked curiously.

" **No, he's Renfaeda's slave…"** she said with obvious disapproval in her voice.

The shadowseer shook her head, **"That's a shame…I would have asked for you to turn him over. We could use a monkeigh like this."**

" **For what exactly?"** Mokaela wondered.

The shadowseer shook her head, **"Nothing that concerns you, Mokaela…"**

' _I need to find that solitaire while I'm here…how am I going to get away from the rest of them though?'_ Seiras thought briefly.

His concerns seemed to be answered when he saw Renfaeda walk around the corner. The succubus queen acknowledged the harlequins dangerously, **"What's this I hear about you wanting MY slave?"**

 **"It is of no concern, Renfaeda Aeshul. We have no intention of taking him from you,"** the shadowseer replied.

"Seiras, find your way back to the others," Renfaeda commanded as she walked over towards Mokaela's side.

Seizing his opportunity to leave the area, Seiras immediately left. For once he was actually thrilled to see Renfaeda. As he found his way back around and headed for the exit, he sensed the familiar aura from before. Instead of returning outside, he followed his way towards the aura instead. He soon found himself at a distant balcony with a respectable amount of privacy from the other Harlequins' area.

As he expected, Seiras finally caught sight of the solitaire sitting alone at the balcony. Her back was turned to him and she was looking out into the horizon of Commorragh. He slowly approached the harlequin but made sure to not seem like he was sneaking up.

The solitaire didn't budge or react at all as Seiras walked over towards her side. She kept impossibly still poise as she ignored him. Trying to get her attention, Seiras spoke to her, "You were my favorite part of the play."

She didn't react or move at all to his comment. He expected some type of condescending response, but he might as well have been invisible and muted to the silent harlequin. She remained still and unresponsive like a statue.

"You're a solitaire, right? That's why you were playing Slaanesh?" Seiras asked her.

She finally turned her head towards him and stared blankly. He couldn't tell what she was thinking due to the mask and was extremely creeped out by her aura.

"How would you know that? The play is in our language, space marine and Slaanesh looks different to everyone. There's no way you would have known that unless you knew what was going on," the solitaire spoke for the first time. Her voice was extremely depressing and carried an emotional grimness to it. While most Eldar voices were annoying to him, hers actually invoked a feeling of sadness and nihilism. He could almost feel her sorrow and it caused a bit of a contagious depression within him.

" **I can understand your language,"** Seiras replied in her race's tongue. He was taking an incredibly huge risk in doing so, but a part of him wanted to believe that he could trust her.

" **I assumed as much…though I find it odd that you would admit it. If you know I'm a solitaire, then you know I can kill you effortlessly. It's an ill omen to speak to one of my kind. What could you possibly want from me?"** she asked with a stoically sad voice.

"You assumed I knew your language?" he responded in gothic.

She nodded as she switched back to gothic as well, "I watched you several times from the stage. It seemed likely judging by your reactions to the narration. Many monkeigh have watched the play before, but you're the only one who I've ever seen that interested in it…specifically me. So tell me, space marine…why are you here? You were staring at me the entire play."

"Well…" he tried to think of something to say as the masked solitaire turned her entire body to face him now. Not being able to see her face made this even more awkward and uncomfortable for him.

' _Sing for her and she'll dance with you…what the hell does that even mean?! Am I literally supposed to sing for her? Is she the one Iruna was talking about, or was it Meela? No…it would have to be her. Even Ashera thought it sounded more like a solitaire.'_ Seiras tried to figure out what to say or do.

He had no idea what to sing and tried desperately to think of something. Against all sense of pride and reason he started singing the first song that popped in his head to her. It just so happened to be a song he once heard in a Meridian Underhive. He did his best to sing it despite not being experienced at the act himself:

"Where'd you get the notion you're only mortal?  
You know there's a dark place that will make you something more;  
I could sell a one-way to absolution;  
To the wholly abstract;  
Where we'll never drift back ashore;  
I've been living on the far side;  
I've been leaving footprints in your mind;  
Tell me all your secrets I could be your key to the afterlife;  
Feel the rhythm in my cold heart;  
I could make your soul a work of art;  
Just a touch of heaven, walking with the dead makes you feel alive;  
We could take a ride on the road to paradise;  
You'll abandon your bones for a desolate home away;  
Skipping the pain of death;  
I'd like to steal your breath and make you new…because you're so blue;  
Live beyond this divide and I promise you the other side;  
Abandon despair inside of you;  
You're ascending now and breaking through;  
Nothing else will ever be as true."

After finishing the song, the solitaire simply stared at him. He half expected an insult or some type of resentful reaction, but to his surprise the solitaire tilted her head and spoke cryptically, "Why would you sing a song like that to me?"

He didn't know what to say and was already beginning to regret his actions.

"Nobody has ever sung to me before. I enjoyed it despite your crude voice. However, I still don't understand why you're here…unless the answer was in the lyrics? It's a riddle then? You're here to offer me something?" she questioned.

' _This is unusual, but at least she reacted better than I expected her to. What should I ask her though? I mean, Iruna talked about her dancing. I suppose that might work,'_ Seiras thought.

"I want you to dance with me," he decided to say those cryptic words in the hope it would evoke some type of solution to his dilemma.

The solitaire stared at him silently before speaking, "Do you know how to dance?"

"Not really…" he trailed off.

"You want me to teach you then? Quite a puzzling interaction. Even my kind avoid my company…I've never actually spoken to a monkeigh before in this manner. You actually want to speak with me…how strange. Don't you know it is extremely bad luck to talk to a solitaire? To my kind it's a terrible omen to interact with one." she responded.

"Well I'm not one of your kind, and I'm a slave in Commorragh…I hardly think that matters right now," he countered.

"Your company isn't unwelcome, but I find it unprecedented. You're different than anyone here. I'll admit I also find it fascinating that you can understand and speak the Eldritch language. That would imply you're very intelligent for a monkeigh. Who taught you?" she asked.

"An Aeldari Autarch from the crashed craftworld Aldmorian. I salvaged his spirit stone on Typhon Primaris before an exterminatus wiped out the planet. I kept it for decades and eventually returned it to craftworlders," Seiras answered her.

"Interesting…Autarchs are highly disciplined and extremely loyal to the Aeldari people. They've walked many paths without losing their way and only they have the mental willpower to bear the burden of leadership. Why did he teach you?" she wondered.

Seiras was silent for a moment before answering, "He didn't by choice…I tortured him and threatened to break his stone and send him to Slaanesh if he didn't help me. Although we didn't like each other, I had a small measure of respect for him. The things he taught me saved my life countless times over."

"Strange…a space marine who willingly desired knowledge from an Aeldari? I was under the impression that was heresy in your 'Great Imperium of Man.'" the solitaire noted.

"It is heresy…but desperate times call for desperate actions. I would walk any path to save others from damnation. That is the warrior's sacrifice after all. I bear my own burdens and regrets from these sins I commit, but they're all for a greater cause. My purity is worth sacrificing for the betterment of mankind," Seiras replied.

She finally stood up and she walked over towards him in a ghostly blur. Reaching up, the solitaire felt the collar around his throat, "A psionic limiter collar…you're a psyker. It makes sense considering only a psyker could talk to a spirit stone. So you're a librarian captive in Commorragh who can understand our language? I see why they keep you around now."

"Nobody else knows I can understand them. I've kept that secret to myself," he explained.

"And yet you share this secret with me? You truly walk the path of damnation then." she stated coldly as she brought her hand back.

He sighed as he begrudgingly responded, "I need your help. It's not easy for me to ask of an Eldar…I have no reason to trust you and I know you have no reason to help me, but I'm taking a big leap of faith here."

"Why ask me?" she asked immediately.

"I feel drawn to you..." Seiras admitted even despite how awkward it sounded.

She was deathly quiet again as she circled him like a colorful blur. Seiras felt a slight tickle from her movements and before he even realized what had happened, he saw drawn on markings all over his body. He couldn't tell if it was ink or blood, but it had a heavy texture to it.

He looked at the markings shocked, _'I didn't even see her move. When did these markings get on me?!'_

"You see those lines? Each one is a place I would have cut you apart. I still can…" she said with grim hostility.

"Why don't you then?" he countered.

The solitaire practically teleported a distance away as she stood over the ledge of the balcony. She was facing him from her perched area and crouched low before speaking, "You feel drawn to me, do you? I'll admit, I'm genuinely flattered by your request…though that would mean you're cursed if you desire my company. In my two thousand years of life, not one person has ever asked me for help. You're a psyker and yet…you aren't groveling in despair from my mere presence. Can't you sense the taint of Slaanesh within me? You didn't avert your eyes like the others…you stared at me. I was your favorite part of the play, was I? Why is that? Are you touched by Slaanesh as well?"

"I am…I've heard Slaanesh's voice before. I also have psychic glamour…at least that's what a farseer told me once. I can tolerate the presence of blanks to some degree. The collar might also shield me as well," he explained.

"I'm not a pariah or blank as you understand it, but my cursed empty soul does create a negative psychic void around me. The effect is the same though. Even my own kind don't like being near me. My only interactions are in the plays and the dances…you're the first person in over a thousand years who has actually attempted to talk to me like this. Why are you under the impression I can help you?" she wondered.

"I don't know, but a farseer sent me on this path," he told the truth.

"This farseer sent you on the path of damnation. You're a sacrifice for one of their agendas I imagine. I suppose they hoped you would help their own people along the way? Let me guess…the farseer was from Iybraesil? They expected you to help free their aspect warriors here I assume. Does that mean you want my help to escape?" the solitaire asked.

Seiras remained silent as he looked directly at the eyes of the mask. He didn't know what to say and simply did not answer.

"No…I won't help you. Specifically, I won't help that farseer. If you want to share the company of another damned soul though…I might humor such an idea. I don't have any friends, so I won't dismiss you just for being a monkeigh." the solitaire finally broke the eerily quiet tension.

' _Well this was a colossal waste of time. Now I have to worry about her telling the others about my ability to understand them.'_ he thought concerned.

"Perhaps you could change my mind though…" she trailed off as she reappeared directly in front of him.

Seiras felt a horrible shiver run down his spine as he was forced to his knees from impossibly fast precision strikes. The solitaire held a blade to his throat and began to caress the flesh and newly grown stubble hairs of his face with the weapon.

"How?" he finally asked her as the lack of a follow up caused his anxiousness to skyrocket. He wasn't scared, but this situation was definitely a lot more intense than he wanted it to be.

"I love games, but nobody ever plays with me. Do you like to play games?" she asked him seriously.

He didn't want to say yes, but had a feeling there wasn't any choice in the matter. He spoke calmly, "Yes."

The solitaire retracted her blade as she sat on the balcony edge and patted next to her side for him to sit down. He got up and walked over before sitting next to the unusual harlequin. His legs were hanging over the edge of the balcony drop off as they sat side by side.

"Do you like riddles? Answer this riddle for me: Forward and forward I go, never looking back. My limit no one knows, more of me do they lack. Like a river I do flow, and a bird I fly. Now can you guess, what am I?" she asked as her head turned towards him dangerously.

Seiras thought for a moment, _'Unknown limit…flows like a river…more of it do we lack…always going forward…'_

"Time?" he answered her slowly.

She nodded, "Yes, I am time. Here's another one for you: The more you take, the more you leave behind. What am I?"

' _What do I take that I leave behind? Man just when I think I'm making progress with her this starts happening. It's like one step forward and two steps back. Wait…'_ he sighed mentally.

"Footsteps?" he answered cautiously.

The solitaire nodded, "Correct. How about this one: You see me in the water, but I never get wet. What am I?"

Seiras thought for a moment before the answer seemed obvious, "A reflection."

"What belongs to you, but others use it more than you?" she asked.

' _Why do I get the feeling she's going to kill me if I get one of these wrong? I haven't even asked her damn name yet. Wait…Name!'_ he thought seriously.

"My name," he answered.

"What is your name, space marine?" she took a break from her riddles and asked him directly.

He answered her immediately, "Seiras. What's yours?"

"I'll tell you if you can answer more riddles for me. Next one: What's harder to catch, the faster you run?" she asked.

"My breath," he answered. Luckily this one was pretty simple.

"You will always find me in the past. I can be created in the present, but the future can never taint me. What am I?" she followed up.

' _These are starting to get more difficult. Let's see…if the future can't taint it, but the present can create it…history?'_ he thought.

"History," the librarian answered.

"Too easy. What is easy to get into but hard to get out of?" she continued.

' _Will this nonsense ever end? I'm going to get myself into some serious trouble here if I mess this up. Trouble!'_ the librarian thought relieved.

"Trouble," he replied.

"These aren't really difficult, but I'm impressed that you can answer them. I honestly expected you to mess up by now," the solitaire noted.

He stared at her briefly before asking a dangerous question, "What happens if I get one wrong?"

"Then you lose," she replied purposely vague.

"I won't miss any then," he said with resolve in an attempt to mask his concerns.

"The more there is…the less you see. What am I?" she kept going.

"Darkness," he replied.

"What can be swallowed but can also swallow you?" the solitaire asked as she scooted closer towards him.

Seiras thought about her question for a long ten seconds as he desperately tried to figure this one out. Eventually the epiphany his him as he answered anxiously, "Pride!"

"Getting nervous now?" she tilted her head at him.

Seiras sighed, "How many more of these do I have to answer?"

"I'll tell you what…if you can stump me on one, then you win. Go ahead and throw your best riddle at me," the solitaire said with calm neutrality.

Trying to remember riddles he's heard throughout his life, Seiras spoke one his sister Shirin got him with once, "When I live, I cry…if you do not kill me, I'll die."

The solitaire was silent for almost a full minute much to Seiras' confusion. He honestly expected her to answer the riddle as it wasn't actually that difficult.

She looked at Seiras and finally answered, "Sorrow?"

"Actually it's a candle…" he said slowly

"Hah! A candle? I suppose I overlooked that possibility. Your primitive Imperium still burns wax to create light. That was a rather unfair riddle on your part. I completely forgot candles even existed," she laughed.

Seiras was somewhat curious to see her depressing and nihilistic voice change into a light laugh. Seeing this type of a reaction was completely unexpected.

"I actually didn't think it would give you any trouble," he replied.

The solitaire sighed, "Well a deal's a deal…you win. I'm actually impressed, Seiras. I'll tell you my name now…It's Aenaria."

"Is there no way I can change your mind about helping me Aenaria? I'm willing to do just about anything at this point." he followed up.

The solitaire faced him again before replying, "Really now? That's a game worth playing. Impress me...try to win me over and I'll consider it."

"Wait, what do you mean by 'win you over?'" he asked, but upon finishing her sentence, the harlequin practically disappeared out of nowhere. Seiras looked around in confusion as he tried to locate her, but soon realized she was gone.

' _How exactly am I going to win her over? What does that even mean? Well this turned out to be a bad idea as usual. Maybe I did get cursed talking to her,'_ Seiras sighed as he left the area.

To his surprise, he noticed the areas that Aenaria marked him with were now gone. He was actually thankful for this as he didn't have any way to explain it to the wyches. Even despite their removal, Seiras still felt marked in a way.

After a short trek back, he finally found his way towards the amphitheater again where he spotted an angry Renfaeda. She quickly growled at him, "I thought I told you to return here! Did you go wandering off?! Don't tell me you were getting funny ideas about running away!"

Before he could answer, his collar began to zap him with excruciating pain. He fell to the ground and shrieked in agony as Renfaeda definitely hit the highest setting on it.

"Stay away from these damned harlequins, Seiras! That's an order from your master!" Renfaeda growled.

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I'm seriously crazy. I apologize in advance for not making this two chapters. Don't ask me why this chapter is 20k words. I just lost my mind and didn't want to end it yet. I don't know why I did this to myself and you readers. Anyways, this chapter was filled to the brim with some heavy exposition, lemons for the lemon throne, and BIG plot developments. I'll give you my usual commentary as always.

We start off with Melisara giving Seiras, Aelendriel, and Mokaela an "innocent" little tour of her lab. Along the way, we learn that Meela is an Oblivion Knight from the sisters of silence. What we don't know is how did Faelan learn Astartes sign language and is Melisara's theory about his immunity to Meela correct?

Moving on from that, we get to the lemons. As some reviewers guessed correctly, they ended up in the bedroom. What does Melisara want Seiras' semen for though? If you felt uncomfortable reading that scene, then that's good…because that's how I intended for it to be. The dark eldar are some perverted weird sickos. The longer Seiras spends in Commorragh, the more desensitized to its depravity he becomes. Melisara might be helping him, but he's still getting exposed to all the heresy along the way.

After all the lemons and what not, we learn that Melisara plans on turning the wyches against each other using Seiras himself. What a lucky guy…*coughs*. Expect wych catfights in the future. A more interesting part of the chapter is the arrival of the harlequins. We get to see them perform a little play for the dark eldar, and Seiras meets a few of them.

Seiras also finally meets the supposed "blank" that Iruna prophesized…or so he thinks. It turns out to be a solitaire just like Ashera guessed. He doesn't know whether it's her or Meela that the prophecy refers to but decides to sing to her anyways. To his surprise, the solitaire speaks with him and he eventually learns her name after answering riddles.

Will our favorite heretical sorcerer regret involving himself with Aenaria? Is he opening Pandora's box and playing with fire by blindly walking this path Iruna set him on? Will this creepy solitaire stalk him and bring trouble along? What will happen if Aenaria and Meela cross paths? All that and more will be answered eventually.

The next chapter will probably be about the Kabal War, and we'll be seeing a lot of the consequences of this chapter's events. Until next time my beloved and loyal readers. As always…thanks for reading.


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